Masquerade Lovers
by Anise Nalci
Summary: A romance saga, involving villains, a wedding, and a secret rendezvous. Sam/Scam and other pairings...
1. Prologue: Engagement

_So, I didn't want this story to revolve __only__ about Sam and Scam, as a lot of other stories do and they do it much better than I do, anyway, so quite a few chapters will involve Clover and Alex as well, although the main romance will be Sam and Scam. I just want to explore how different romances affect the TS world as I know it._

_Hope you guys enjoy this. Rated a __**very**__ strong__**T**__, for content (blush)._

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_**Spiraling downwards…**_

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_He only wanted to annihilate the spies and destroy WOOHP. But one night changes everything. A romance saga involving Clover's wedding, Alex speed-dating, a married Britney and Sam's secret meetings with a villain. SS._

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**Masquerade Lovers**

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**Prologue**

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_**Engagement**_

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Being a final year student at Mali-U had its advantages, once exams and coursework was subtracted from the equation, Clover knew. The professors weren't horrible, although they did tend to ask for an extraordinarily large sum of work. Besides, at twenty-three, she was living the life she always dreamed of – minus homework, Clover stressed.

After all, she knew what she was going to be in life: a fashion designer/spy. She was the only one out of the spies who opted out of science – Alex was into sport science (that girl was such a _jock_!) while Sam was going into medical research and was currently pursuing a BA in Chemistry as part of her pre-med course (that girl was _such_ a nerd!)

Clover sighed.

The only thing that was missing was Blaine. _Blaine_, Clover thought, with a little sigh. Her long-time boyfriend since the start of her life in Mali-U and fellow WOOHP agent who was then shipped off to Australia (Clover suspected that WOOHP was out to separate them – hence the new rule about fellow agents not fraternizing which was implemented later that year, which didn't matter, because Blaine was in WOOHP Australia, while Clover was in WOOHP USA).

They were – much to Sam's amusement and Alex's surprise – still together. Alex had joked that Clover could never keep a long-distance relationship, especially with all the hot Hollywood guys in Beverly Hills (and Clover had been unfaithful once or twice when they both had started dating), but _somehow_ they managed to stay in touch (with Clover amazingly still as infatuated and in love with him after all these years). Sam got Alex to pay her, because Alex was sure of and had bet against Sam that their relationship would never last (Clover and Blaine, not Sam and Alex), and Alex obviously lost the bet. It helped that Clover had somehow become less shallow and materialistic (although not so shallow and materialistic that she could forsake fashion – or a chance to force Sam into sharing the winnings of her bet with her – and hot guys – and by hot guys she meant Blaine only. Most guys couldn't shine a torch next to Blaine).

Her cell phone rang, while she was sitting down at one of those quaint coffee shops around town, sipping her café latte. She was alone, since Alex was off at some sport practice or another (she was sure it didn't matter to her), while Sam was at some lab doing God-knows-what-research-that-could-save-the-world, and she was sure she didn't care what it was about. "Hey _Gorgeous_."

Clover withstood the urge to giggle. Blaine could be so corny sometimes. _He must be off-duty_, Clover realized with happiness. That meant that he was in the USA, and probably on his way to meet her right now. That meant more time for each other. "Hey _Hunk_," she smiled.

She couldn't help it; she giggled.

The sound of his laughter (probably because she was giggling like a silly schoolgirl – what was with her? She thought she was more mature than _that_) greeted her. "I've missed hearing you laugh."

"I've missed seeing you around," Clover said, somewhat flirtatiously.

"Why don't you say it to my face?"

Clover looked up, and saw Blaine's familiar face. She shut her phone with a snap and stood up, giving Blaine a mega-wattage smile. He came over and gave Clover a long kiss on the lips.

"Miss me?" Clover asked him mischievously when he drew away from her.

"Always," he said, smiling.

"So, I hope you've been behaving yourself," Clover smiled. "Britney can't babysit you, now that she's gotten married and on her honeymoon."

"Of course, I have," Blaine said. "I'm more concerned about you. I hope you've been behaving yourself too."

"Oh, of course, I have," Clover smiled. "I've kept my hands to myself, but it's really not my fault that guys can't keep their hands off me. I mean, just yesterday, Orlando Bloom and Johnny Depp cornered me and begged me to –" Clover couldn't help it; she began laughing.

Blaine, who knew Clover was trying to get him riled up, simply smirked. "Well, I'm sure if they knew you were spoken for, they would have left you alone. Because once you're a married woman, they can't take any liberties with you."

"Oh, you're right," Clover laughed, taking it in the spirit it was given. Or so she thought. Because now, Blaine had gotten out of his seat, was kneeling in front of her with one knee, and were saying those four magical words that Clover had dreamed her Prince Charming would say to her, ever since she was a little girl of three. And now, twenty years later, it was all coming true –

"_Will you marry me?_"

Unable to speak, she burst into tears and nodded, hugging him. "Yes. _Yes. __**Yes**_."

It felt so right, and so perfect, at that moment, to say yes. Because she knew she loved him, and that he loved her, and nothing could ever top how she felt at that moment.

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_**Author's Note**_

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_First chapter up. Read and review!_

_Love,_

_lianneharmony_

_P.S.: I know I made Clover less sentimental, sappy and less materialistic, right, but it's fanfiction. And besides, this takes, like more than five years after canon, so bear with me, okay?_

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_**References**_

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_All characters belong to Marathon, Inc. Hence references to characters you recognize here from __Totally Spies__, beginning from the beginning of the fic to the end, all belong to said company. I make no money from them._

_So TS is not owned by me, Sue, so you no sue!_

_Haha, I had to make a really bad pun for my disclaimer._

_The quaint coffee shop was inspired by __The Coffee Bean (And Tea Leaf)__ which I adore._


	2. Part I: Surprise

**Masquerade Lovers**

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**Part 1: An Introduction to Love**

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_**Surprise**_

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Alex wasn't at sports practice, or some other thing, as Clover put it.

She was _with David_.

She knew that Clover had Blaine now, but what about Sam? As far as she knew, Sam still was infatuated with David. And who wouldn't be? Alex knew she was head-over-heels, crazy-is-as-crazy-does, hopelessly, passionately in love with David.

Hence the secrecy.

David was the soul of discretion, so that helped. While Alex felt a twinge of guilt at betraying Sam's confidence, she knew that David wouldn't tell anyone anything she told him.

He was awesome that way.

So, Alex had always walked home, careful to carry the bag she usually put her sports equipment in, towards their penthouse. After all, she still was in the sports' team, one of the best, if she could say so herself. She had the greatest speed and stamina of any athlete (excepting for the guy athletes) in Mali-U, and thus was the best fighter in the spies' little trio.

Anyway, her sports equipment stuff was very important to be shown so that no one knew that immediately after sports, she had gone for a quick meet-up with David, especially since she knew Sam would be home by then, and Sam was relatively observant, and would wonder what Alex was really doing. Which was why she was so careful to make sure David was nowhere within a five mile radius of her was she went home. Although, come to think about it, Sam had thrown herself recently into her studies, explaining her obvious (and not seemingly, as in Alex's case) lack of a love life. Typical, perfect, overachieving Sam. She wanted to graduate _magna cum laude_, or whatever that meant. Alex didn't give a damn. She just wished Sam wasn't so smart alecky, but she knew that Sam was Sam and she was best friends with Sam _because_ she was Sam, even though said Sam was so smart alecky, but that was only because she was Sam.

Okay, she had sufficiently confused herself. Good thing Clover wasn't around or she'd end up even more confused.

Or – wait. Maybe Clover was around? She was supposed to be back by now. How long could sipping coffee, watching beautiful people pass by, take?

"_**Clover**_!" No answer.

_Oh dear_.

"_**Sam**_!" Alex yelled. The walls echoed back her name. The door to Sam's room opened, and a Sam with her head covered in a towel like a turban popped out, and was dressed in a pretty green bathrobe which enhanced the emerald green of her eyes. She'd obviously just taken a shower.

"You haven't seen Clover, have you?"

"No," Sam shook her head. "I haven't seen her since I left the penthouse this morning." Of course not. Sam hadn't been back to the penthouse, opting to spend most of her time in the library until she was supposed to be back at the penthouse because she needed to shower and sleep. Clover, on the other time, loved the penthouse and stayed there unless it was summer. But it wasn't summer. It was February, and it was still no time and too cold to be sunbathing.

"You don't think she could be in any trouble, do you? But she's a big girl, she can take care of herself," Alex felt like she was now having a conversation with herself and stopped.

"I'm sure," Sam said. "How was practice?"

"Same old, same old," Alex said, not giving any descriptions.

It was then that they heard voices at the front of the door. A deep one, and a high-pitched one, and the high-pitched voice was gurgling with laughter.

"That must be Clover," Sam said, her voice mysteriously lowered to a whisper.

"With who?" Alex replied, in the same quiet tine.

"Girls!" Clover burst in, practically dragging Blaine along, who looked sheepish.

"Of _course_," Sam muttered under her breath. "Coming, Clover!"

"You will never believe what happened today," Clover said, bursting with excitement.

"Like, what?" Sam said, curious. _Surely not –_

"Well," Blaine put a hand behind his head, as his other arm pulled Clover ever closer to him. "I asked Clover to marry me, and she said yes." This was said at the same time that Clover shrieked with happiness (almost as loud as a banshee, Alex noted, although she wasn't exactly sure how they sounded like; but Clover shrieking at that moment made a pretty good example of how any banshee should shriek):

"_**Blaine and I are getting married!"**_

Alex's jaw dropped. Sam looked surprise. The thought that _Clover _would settle down first had _never_ crossed their minds.

Yet it was all happening at that very moment. The two girls recovered quickly, and they both screamed in excitement.

"Oh my _goodness_! Clover, I'm so _**happy**_ for you!" Sam cried.

"_**Group hug**_!" Alex cried. The girls hugged each other and jumped about.

"There's going to be a million and one things to prepare for the wedding!" Clover said.

"Oh, we'll help you. Don't worry about a thing, Clover!" Alex squealed.

"Yeah! – But wait," Sam said. Alex, Blaine and Clover stopped in their tracks, as if Sam had grown another head. Sam drew in a deep breath, wishing she didn't have to have opened her mouth at that point. "What would Jerry say?"

"Jer?" Clover said blankly.

"Your boss, dearest," Blaine said, amused.

"Well, believe it or not, Blaine managed to get him to stage an engagement party for us back at HQ next week in celebration! Can you believe it?" Clover yelled, remembering what Blaine had told her. She began to jump up and down in excitement. Alex swore she saw wedding bells in Clover's eyes – not that she was surprised.

"Are you serious?" Alex asked. "A party? At WOOHP? _Awesome_!"

"I _know_!"

"That's unbelievable," Sam said, shaking her head. "That old softie," she added, with a smile.

"So when's the wedding planned for?" Alex asked.

"Hopefully by the end of this summer, after your graduations," Blaine said, smiling.

"I hope we won't be busy," Sam added, with a dainty frown. Clover gave Sam a gentle shove.

"Take a damper, Sammie!" Alex said. "It'll all work out."

"I hope so," Sam drew in a deep breath. "I really hope so."

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_**Author's Note**_

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_Second chapter done. Quite short, because I didn't want to do it in parts. There will be a party next. Who knows what could happen?_

_Again, please read and review. Reviews are always love, and I appreciate criticism (as long as it's constructive and is not insulting),_

_lianneharmony_

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_**References**_

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_You'll recognize the way the wedding news was delivered as an amalgamation of various "We're getting married scenes"._

"_**But she's a big girl, she can take care of herself."**_

_A variation of the Nelly Furtado song __Promiscuous__: "I'm a big girl, I can handle myself."_

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_**Shoutouts**_

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_Thanks to __**Poison's Ivy**__,__** Cresenta's Lark**__ and __Beth__ for reviewing! Hoping this chapter does not disappoint!_


	3. Masquerade

**Masquerade Lovers**

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_**Masquerade**_

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For Clover, the week passed by in a blur. There was so much to do, so little time – and Clover could not ever remember feeling this happy, this _ecstatic_, this _**blissful**_. Her parents were emailed, and while her father had been shocked (at one point she overheard him yelling, "_Who is the Blaine boy? __**How come I have never heard of him before**_?"), her mother, who knew more about Clover's spying career (although she never approved of it, even though she'd been recruited, along with Aunt Gabby and Aunt Carmen), was happy for her daughter.

"Imagine, in less than half a year, you'll be married! Oh, Clover darling!"

Blaine, whose parents were archaeologists and were in Africa, sent an email that, although riddled with many references to Pharaohs, Nefertiti, Isis, Anubis, Cleopatra, King Tut and the like, showed that they were truly happy that their twenty five-year old son had finally found a girl worth waiting for.

The only thing that slightly threw Clover off her happy boat was the idea of her party being done as a masquerade. Jerry had been all that was cooperative – or maybe not? Jerry was prone to reminiscing, and when he first saw her, he began, "Clover, I remember a time, when you were only sixteen years old and had just joined WOOHP. You were a spoilt, conceited, vain girl – and you still are, don't worry! (Here Clover's palms rolled into fists to prevent herself from attacking Jerry) – and now, you're a grown up woman of twenty three, in love and about to get married – excuse me," Jerry suddenly disappeared.

(Alex later told Clover that she heard from GLADIS that Jerry was bawling his eyes out in the men's bathroom, wailing and screaming almost incoherently, although GLADIS _had _been able to discern through Jerry's cries, a wail of, "They were so young – and now, _they are so __**grown up**_! GLADIS, I feel _**old**_!")

Anyway, Jerry had the audacity to propose a masquerade! But Blaine and Alex and Sam had agreed enthusiastically to such a party, much to Clover's chagrin, so she was overruled. Anyway, it could be fun –

Scratch that. It _was _going to be fun. Blaine had called Clover and suggested costumes, and Clover was finally going to dress up like one of those fairytale princesses, while Blaine assumed the role of a prince. Things couldn't get better.

Besides, other people were allowed in. WOOHP had a policy of throwing several events in the year to throw people off (especially villains) from tracking the WOOHP headquarters. Posing as an _elite_ hotel. Which was fitting actually, seeing as Mrs. Lewis thought Jerry was actually a hotel manager. And an engagement party well publicized by Clover's father was just the thing that would thicken the cover.

Clover had picked up her costume earlier that morning, along with Sam and Alex's. The girls had giggled, promising not to tell each other what their costumes were, until they came out of their respective costumes when Blaine and Alex's anonymous date picked them up in the WOOHP limos. Sam decided to go dateless.

"Who knows, Sammie?" Clover winked, causing Sam to blush red to the roots of her fiery hair. "Maybe you'll get lucky tonight. It's a full moon tonight and you know what that means."

Clover and Alex let out a wolf-howl.

Two hours later, they met at their appointed time at the living room. Clover was a vision, of course, in a sleeveless gown of ocean-blue silk shot with gold threads, and flowers were embroidered in gold at the shoulders and waist. She wore periwinkle-blue wrist-length lacy gloves and periwinkle-blue stilettos, and her mask and coronet were both gold, with blue stones that Clover suspected where sapphires highlighting the brows. The faintest scent of Ralph Lauren hung to her. Her hand, barely shoulder-length, was pinned up in a very Grace Kelly fashion, smooth and sleek and very 1950s Hollywood.

Alex's costume, however, was inspired by _I Dream Of Genie_, with her sleeveless, midriff-baring scarlet cotton top, also embroidered with various assorted patterns in a shade of magenta, showing of her lithe, athletic figure, that was sure to knock the pants of her date (and other men as well, for that matter), her chiffon harem pants were of the same shade of pink, and were floaty and translucent, sensual without appearing skanky. She had a mantle of sparkling red, and she was veiled, so it was difficult to see her face. She wore matching red sandals and was decked with faux rubies, making her look more like an Arabian princess from long ago than a lady of the night from a brothel.

Sam's was the plainest costume of the girls. She wore an all-white silk sleeveless gown, much like Clover's, but there was no embroidery. She had a long train, though and a deep flounce, but there was nothing ornamental on her except for a plain diamond locket in the shape of a heart she wore that she had for ages and matching bracelet and earrings (it being a gift from her paternal grandmother on her sweet sixteenth, or – as her late grandmother would say – _The Day She Became A Woman_) but had never had the opportunity to wear. Her mask was silver in color and so were the kitten heels she wore. Her hair was pinned up, making it look shorter than usual, and people who saw her would assume her hair was slightly below shoulder length, than up to her waist as it actually was.

They began giggling in excitement (some things you never outgrew) and amidst phrases such as, "You look so _totally _amazing!", "I don't believe it!", "Are you sure you don't want a less plain dress? I have extras!" and "Careful, you'll tear the costume!" the doorbell rang, and Blaine and Alex's date were in awe of the vision they made. Conversation ran rampant among the two pairs of lovers (although no one except for Alex seemed to know the true identity of her date – but that didn't matter, because he was pretty interesting and seemed like a great catch for Alex), where Blaine was dressed as a prince, with the white shirt and dark blue pantaloons, and a gold coronet and mask with blue stones (_faux sapphire like Clover's, perhaps_, Sam thought), and Alex's date, who she did not recognize and didn't believe she knew him (although his voice _did _sound _**familiar**_), dressed as an Indian rajah of white and purple, with a matching mask.

It did not end at the party, where the two couples went off on their own respective ways; Blaine and Clover in the spotlight, and Alex and her Anonymous Date at the sidelines. Sam briefly wished that she had not forsaken a social life in order to study so much, but the thought briefly passed. Somehow, she knew, if she were to find _The One _anytime soon, it would be tonight.

She headed to the top of the roof, where there was a beautiful garden decorated with plants and several large wooden benches (instead of the helicopter pad that Sam had always seen there, remembering that for _today _WOOHP headquarters was an elite hotel). She could see the moon, large and opaque, from the top of the WOOHP building. Already looking at it gave her a courage and recklessness she had never felt before, and suddenly, more than ever, the moon seemed to give the night an aura of mystery. It could be that somewhere, there was someone, feeling as lost as she did, but as reckless and willing as well, something that she'd never felt before.

"_A night like this could encourage moon madness_," she mused, more to herself than anyone.

"It _is_ a dangerous night for lovers," a voice agreed. Sam spun around, she had not been aware that anyone had been near her, but already the moon was invading her senses, numbing them, making her blissfully unaware and dreamy.

_She'd never felt like this before._

The speaker of the voice was male. And tall, definitely tall. His features were not discernible in the moonlight, however bright it was, but it was obvious that he was handsome, from his brown hair and fascinating eyes; suddenly, it didn't really matter to Sam. He was dressed in black, as a domino, which would have looked ridiculous but on him lent him an air of mystery and was so intoxicating to a moon-drunk Sam.

"Is it now?" Sam began to tremble violently. She tended to do that when nervous sometimes when she was younger. She'd thought she'd grown out of it, but apparently she had not.

"Who are you?"

"Does it matter?" He looked away from her. Her trembling, however, made him look up. "You're cold."

"No, it's only –"

He laughed gently. Again, Sam had a distinct feeling that she knew him, but shook off the feeling. "I suppose you are as much affected by the moon as I am. Tell me, what's a beautiful girl like you doing outside on a cold, lonely night like this?"

Sam's porcelain skin betrayed her, by blushing profusely. "Oh, I don't know about beautiful –"

"Divine, perhaps? Before I lifted your chin up I assumed you were corporeal."

Sam laughed nervously. "I'm very much real, I assure you."

"But you are not Beatrice, leading me to the inferno?"

"I am no Beatrice."

"No, you must be Psyche, for I am no Dante."

"Do you assume to be Eros? Like Cupid, reigning as the God of Love?"

"With all his power he fell in love with Psyche, one of the most beautiful among mortals. Like Eros, I foresee you shall be my downfall."

"Or shall you be mine? Aphrodite had separated those two lovers," Sam replied. What on Earth possessed her to answer back in such a coy manner? _It must be the moon_, she mused.

"But they were reunited at Mount Olympus, to live happily ever after," the man said, as he drew nearer to Sam and caressed her cheek. His touch sent shivers up her spine. She drew away.

"Do you draw away because you are afraid of this?" He smiled, as his fingers lightly grazed her arm. Sam withdrew it from his grasp. He smiled in understanding. He took her arms in a firm grip and drew her closer, whispering in her ear:

"_Do not be afraid of the rapidity with which this has happened. Le coeur a ses raisons, que la raison ne connaît point_."

Stunned at his close proximity, Sam said nothing, although her lips were slightly parted. She understood what he had said; it was, after all, a famous quote. She'd studied Pascal before: _The heart has its own logic which no logician will ever comprehend._

"Sit down," he said, motioning to the bench. Her body, as though acting with a will of its own, moved near to the man. He smiled faintly at her compliance.

He began to talk about the most ordinary of things, and she replied in the same manner, gradually relaxing in this more casual conversation, instead of the smoky parallels of before. She saw he was educated, he saw she was intelligent. They ceased to look away from each other, at the moon, and at each other. They spoke for a very long time. Sam somehow felt at ease with him. She instinctively trusted him, although she could not fathom why.

It was when they stopped speaking and looked at each other that Sam realized he was holding her hands. There was a silence, and then he lowered down and kissed her, in a mind-shattering kiss that shook Sam to the core.

"I have never done this before," she managed to say, gasping when he parted. She was dizzy, and somehow excited. She did not know why, but she felt a connection with this man, a strong attachment, that if she were less cautious, she would have called it love, had it not been so sudden and so soon.

His lips formed a faint smile. "Whoever you are," he said, lowering down for another kiss, "If you knew who I was, I doubt you would do anything of this sort with me."

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_**Author's Note**_

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_Longer than usual chapter, but oh-so-sexy! My favorite, so far. You can probably guess who the domino is. May be a little OOC, but hey, Sam doesn't know who he is._

_Ooh, I just love it myself. _

_Enjoy, read and review,_

_lianneharmony_

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_**References**_

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_This whole chapter was inspired by a scene in __August Rush__. Watch it. Enough said. Except Sam and the mystery guy weren't wearing masks, of course. Clover's line is almost a direct quote from the movie. This line was also adapted for the story:_

"_**It's a full moon tonight and you know what that means."**_

"_**Do not be afraid of the rapidity with which this has happened…**_**"**

_The above quote by mystery guy was borrowed from __The Fortescue Diamond__. I've forgotten the writer. It is a Regency romance, and also takes place in a masquerade._

"_**Le coeur a ses raisons, que la raison ne connaît point."**_

_This was a quote by Blaise Pascal. It translates to: The heart has its own logic which no logician will ever comprehend._

_Grace Kelly is real. An American actress-turned-Princess of Monaco. She makes us believe in fairytales._

_Dante and Beatrice. Dante had created a famous work of art/literature involving a girl named Beatrice who he fell in love with. I can't remember the exact name though, sorry. Wikipedia it, though. It's pretty interesting. Darn my short-term memory!_

_Eros and Psyche. Eros is the Greek God of Love, better known by his Roman name, Cupid. He was the son of Aphrodite (Venus), and grazed himself with his own arrows when he fell in love with Psyche, who Aphrodite hated, because her parents had claimed Psyche's beauty surpassed that of Aphrodite. Wikipedia it to find out what happened. It's an important theme of the story. :)_

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_**Shoutouts**_

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_Thanks go to __**Poison's Ivy**__,__** Cresenta's Lark**__,__** BloodyRen**__,__** Redheaded Devil **__and __Beth__ for reviewing! You guys = awesome! Hope you guys liked this chapter!_


	4. Desire

**Masquerade Lovers**

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_**Desire**_

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Tim Scam was very clever. Being a former WOOHP agent and a Physics' whiz (who do you think came up with all the security systems at WOOHP? Granted, it was a modification of his work but the underlying principles were the same), he had picked the perfect timing to break out of his WOOHP cell. It hadn't been that easy, since there were security cameras involved, monitoring his every move in his 6 by 6 cell, but he made it. He admitted, however, security hadn't been that tight, because he managed to hack the systems more easily than usual. But that had been the point, because there was less trouble. He knew the other members of LAMOS would be able to make their way out. They would meet in six days, and then plot their next move.

Of course, he knew about the _masquerade_ Jerry had organized and hence he decided to escape at this time. While security was still as vigilant as ever, it simply wasn't enough to capture him. He managed to ditch his orange prison clothes easily, because there were lots of costumes lying around, and all he did was break in into one of the offices and steal a costume. The particular one he broke in was a costume of a domino which was popular for masquerades during the Regency era. Literally. But that was okay with him. As long as he didn't get captured –

He was about to leave the building, when he remembered that it was a _Masquerade_. Meaning, he could crash the party, and no one would no it was him.

Meaning, _he could annihilate WOOHP from the inside, and never be caught_.

He snickered. WOOHP could be so lax sometimes, and that would be its downfall.

However, he would have to take them out one at a time. Although, he _really _didn't feel like getting the clothes dirty. The domino outfit was expensive, and he felt bad for the guy who'd be missing his outfit.

No, he just wanted to get rid of the spies. And Jerry. An action just enough to shake up WOOHP so that it would be paralyzed and wouldn't be able to fight back against his next plan.

But he'd have to wait until the party cleared, before he could make his move. Right now, in a hall full of agents, he'd be shipped back to a prison cell before he could pull anything off. He took note of the position of the spies, though. The annoying, vain blonde (Clover), was dressed as a princess (honestly, that made him want to gag – although he tried to contain himself). The brunette (Alexandra) was dressed as a belly dancer/Arabian princess/someone who belonged in a harem, and was next to them was the redhead (Samantha), dressed as a nymph. She looked different somehow.

He knew he couldn't be sure, because there were so many blonde, red-haired and brunette girls, and besides, it was a freaking _masquerade_. But come on, the blonde was definitely Clover, and the trio would always stick together, right?

He'd have to bide his time. Seeing nothing else to do, he went up to the roof (where he knew the cameras would be turned off during this time, as the roof only led to the hall, and you couldn't get to any important person's office unless you jumped off the building to your doom. Besides, the roof was too darned conspicuous). He saw the bright moon, so close and opaque. It seemed to permeate his being, and he felt one with the night. For a minute he wondered (a lapse in thought, which he then, with anger, categorized as a weakness and locked it away in his subconscious) whether the myth was true, that during a full moon, one might find one's deepest desires.

But that was impossible. He wanted love, but WOOHP had effectively destroyed any chances of that when he was branded a criminal. Hence, he had considered love and any of the more tender emotions as weakness, which he had purged from his system, and made him a little of a sociopath. Not that he minded. As long as he was able to destroy WOOHP for what they did to him, he wouldn't care what happened to him –

And he wanted Tara to live again –

He wasn't alone, he realized, as he heard a female voice. It was so melodious, yet – familiar. She must have been one of those agents who'd been around when he worked, who he'd known during the tenure at WOOHP.

Whoever it was, she must have bloomed during the years he'd been gone from WOOHP. Even when he was Mac Smit, he hadn't come across many WOOHP agents, seeing as WOOHP was divided into different teams which hardly interacted with each other.

She was dressed all in white, like an angel. Her red hair was shoulder-length or thereabouts, and she was gazing at the moon.

"_A night like this could encourage moon madness_," she mused, more to herself than anyone.

And it was moon-madness, for it seemed that his body had a will of its own, and he drew closer to her, just to see the face of the woman. She was beautiful, for sure, and he wanted to he closer to her. To touch her, for she might slip away into the air, as if no more corporeal than a figment of his imagination.

He answered her with a stupid statement, he was sure of it. The female turned around, and while Tim had hoped she was unmasked, it was unfortunate that she was. Yet, she looked, even as her features were hidden from him, extremely beautiful. No WOOHP agent could look this beautiful. He assumed she was a relative to one of the agents, or even the darned spies, for that matter; most possibly the red-haired Samantha, as their hair color were both the same.

It didn't matter. She was beautiful, and he didn't care who she was, or who her relatives were.

She trembled, and he was gratified to see that she, too, felt as vulnerable as he knew he must have been feeling inside. Only years of hiding his emotions made him able to maintain his somewhat stoic expression, and even that seemed to be cracking as she replied to his parallels of each other with Dante and Beatrice, Eros and Psyche. He managed a smile. Little by little, Tim Scam lost everything that he'd fashioned himself to be after he was removed from WOOHP and begin to become almost human again. He began to remember what it felt to desire something, as a human would, and he remembered how beautiful and tempting a woman's figure could be.

_And she was all woman_.

He knew he was goading her, goading her into a situation which she was possibly not ready for. Sighing, he knew he could not have such a rendezvous with this woman. She was hesitant, and he did not want to rob her of that innocent, almost naïve look on her face. It told him she was an innocent to love, even though she may have fancied herself in love before. But otherwise, she was completely inexperienced in real, passionate love, the way he suddenly felt for her tonight. He sat down, content to converse with the woman in as normal a way as possible. It may not have turned out to be complete moon madness after all. And there was no reason why after learning about each other, they could not remain as friends. She was intelligent and wise for her years. And keep in contact in the future. As friends, of course.

_And perhaps something more_. But Tim dismissed that as moon-madness, just as she said.

Yet their conversations skirted around their true identities. Tim suspected that the masks had something to do with it. They each wanted to preserve their anonymity, for who was to know that the other might not like the person underneath the masks.

He did not know how, but suddenly, in the quiet of the night, when they were both done talking and the air was silent, heavy upon him, Tim threw discretion to the wind. Her hand, so delicate and white, had somehow managed to find itself into his larger, tanned one. At that moment, Tim felt like a Beast. The woman in front of him, sitting next to him on the bench was so trusting, so _naïve ­_– he threw discretion to the wind and took her in his arms – her delicate figure in his arms – and kissed her, passionately.

She stiffened, and sagged against his body, allowing the kiss to deepen. To Tim, it lasted for an eternity and yet it was not long enough. He wanted more, but he finally drew away, almost afraid to see her reaction.

Her eyes, emerald and green, were wide and showed her shock, her lips were slightly parted, swollen and red, and her chest was heaving, as she gasped for breath. He was, for a moment, afraid that she would rebuke him for his invasion, but it didn't come.

"I have never done this before," she said. He knew that. Suddenly he felt like holding her close and crying. He was sure at that moment she was no WOOHP agent, for he knew that as everyone associated with that organization or any other worldwide or state organization, for that matter, who knew of him (except for villains, who merely wanted to use his immense knowledge for their own gain) would have spurned his attentions. Instead, a grim smile, which he hoped did not betray his sadness, accompanied his words, as he lowered down for another kiss: "Whoever you are, if you knew who I was, I doubt you would do anything of this sort with me."

She did not protest, but she let out a small moan as he kissed her. He was gentle, afraid she would break and draw back, but she did neither, and seemed to welcome his release.

Hell tempted him, he reasoned. He knew after WOOHP had betrayed him, he had turned into a reprehensible being, and nothing before mattered anymore. Not how kind he had been nor how good he had been, because now he was neither. Yet could it be that he was showing so much compassion to a woman he barely knew? She had to be a virago to get under his skin as she did.

Yet, the woman in his arms could not have been sent from so fallen a place. She was heaven-sent, but he hoped she was no false Eve. How could she be, so trusting, so _naïve_?

"_**Le coeur a ses raisons, que la raison ne connaît point**_**."**

He found it strange that this one woman, of all nights, tonight, had worked into him a feeling of compassion and care so deep that had he not been more naïve, he would have called it love.

"_**The heart has its own logic which no logician will ever comprehend."**_

Damn Pascal for being right.

Her beautiful white dress, the material flimsy under his hands, slipped off easily under his touch.

_Hell tempted me_.

And he knew he was just another man.

---

_**Author's Note**_

_---_

_Yes! It was Scam! This chapter tells __his__ POV._

_At first sight, you guys might dismiss this as a filler chapter, but really, it's pretty important. The more astute among you will be wondering:_

"_**Who's Tara?"**_

_But that's another story (or two) for another chapter (or two) for another day (or more). Hope you enjoyed it! :) I know it was pretty risqué (remember, I do not particularly condone premarital sex), but after all that love and lust, it only seemed natural?_

_And as for any OOCness, well, blame it on moon-madness._

_And it's going to get darker and less humorous come the following chapters. I warned you._

_lianneharmony_

_---_

_**References**_

_---_

_From Scam's point of view, so pretty much the same thing, although __Hell Tempted Me__ was the title of a fanfic that I ripped off this site (it was a __Powerpuff Girls__ fandom that I read the said fanfic) Pretty fitting, isn't it?_

_Blaise Pascal is love. Have you heard of the Pascal triangle? Who knew that a mathematician could be a romantic? I just __had__ to refer to the quotes again!_

_Scam thinking of himself as a Beast, of course, is tied to parallels with Beauty and the Beast. Obviously, his anonymous girl was the Beauty. :P_

---

_**Shoutouts**_

_---_

_**Cresenta's Lark, BloodyRen, Redheaded Devil **__and __**Poison's Ivy**__ have my everlasting gratitude with all their lovely reviews._

_Beth__ is awesome because she reviewed and caught out a small (okay, it was huge) mistake I had made. I have since corrected it! Thanks a lot! :D_


	5. Heartbreak

**Masquerade Lovers**

---

_**Heartbreak**_

---

Sam woke up, groggily, the next morning, as dawn rose, on top of the wooden benches on the roof of the WOOHP headquarters. It was such a beautiful sunrise, she thought, as the sky changed from complete darkness with only the moon and stars for illumination, to a purplish color, as the sun rose. _So beautiful,_ she mused. Sam watched it in awe, as it cleared the cobwebs and the nausea she felt from sleeping.

She was briefly aware of a male presence, holding her close to his body, his warmth radiating through her own body, and snuggled in, before she realized what had happened last night. The moon-madness had cleared from her head, and her eyes widened. She was wide awake, and she was blushing at what she (and he) had done last night.

_She was no innocent virgin any longer_.

She eased herself from the warm embrace of the man she'd made love to last night and smiled as she pondered his sleeping form. In the daylight, he was pretty much as perfect as she remembered, in more ways than one. Everything about him seemed perfect to her, as she recalled the events of last night –

Her blush deepened. Her fingers gently traced the outline of his face, the dark brown hair, the strong jawline, and aquiline features, and rested on the mask. They had not removed the masks last night, preferring to preserve the anonymity the masks offered in the darkness of the night and light of the moon. In both cases, the masks had covered most of their faces, and hidden most of their features.

She wondered how his face was, under the mask. He seemed so peaceful now, with his hands around her waist.

_Perhaps, she could_ –

Curiosity killed the cat, and it swept her with such a degree, that she no longer cared if his face was brutally scarred or not, or if he was horribly disfigured in some way or another. He was still the same man she made love to that fateful night of moon-madness, and she was convinced that they shared a bond too strong to be severed. She undid the mask –

And then wished she never did, or that she could be struck dead at that moment.

He wasn't disfigured, horribly scarred or anything. He was perfect and handsome –

But he was a villain.

He was Tim Scam, the Spies' sworn enemy.

Sam felt faint. She'd never fainted before, but if ever there was a time, she'd faint right now. Dead away. Somewhere in her mind, her inner voice was chastising her for giving in to moon-madness and falling in love with a villain, and giving him her virginity –

Sam shut her mind. No, she _wasn't _in love with Tim Scam. And, okay, the virginity thing was gone. She hadn't exactly been resistant –

She needed to get away from him. How could someone so evil and scarred in his soul be so perfect, as perfect as he had been for her last night? It made no sense. Sam was no psychologist, and already it made her head dizzy.

She tried to get up, but had forgotten his arms were still around her. Too confused to even feel the slightest bit revolted (which she should be feeling at the moment, she willed herself, trying to push away the pleasant memories of last night into a box in her subconscious she could lock and throw the key away to where it could never be found), she fell back with an _oomph_, effectively waking him up. Just her luck. His eyes, warm and fascinating, opened they had looked at her with such tenderness last night – how could that even be _possible?_), and a smile tugged on his lips, before vanishing on her confused and frightened face. "What's wrong?" He asked, in a voice full of concern, raising himself up, and taking her by her hands.

How could he do that, sound so loving, when he hated her? How was it that he was even _capable_ of sounding like that? He was a sociopath, for goodness' sake!

In all the confusion, she sagged against him, tears beginning to run down her cheeks. _This wasn't supposed to happen_! She cursed silently. _I was supposed to find my Prince Charming – who __wasn't__ one of my sworn enemies – and marry him and live happily ever after._

She remembered what he said last night:

"_Whoever you are," he said, lowering down for another kiss, "if you knew who I was, I doubt you would do anything of this sort with me."_

Oh, how true his words had been at that point! And yet – Sam didn't regret what she had done. She only regretted that it had to be him.

"Why did it have to be you?" She sobbed into his chest. "Why did it have to be you? _Why_?" She looked up at him, willing his features to change. His face now had a puzzled expression, and his hand went up, unconsciously, to touch his face. When it came across where the mask should have been, he froze.

"Why?" he said, in a strangled voice. Sam only continued to cry softly. The same hand left his face to stroke her cheek. "But it doesn't change the way I feel about you."

"_Please_," Sam said. "You don't even know me."

He tilted her chin, and try as she might, she couldn't look away from his face. He saw everything she felt in her face: disappointment, anger, regret, confusion – and yet there was softness in her face, which he would have dared to call tenderness. But that softness was disappearing from her face. Would she forget everything that happened last night? He was sure last night meant just as much to her as it had for him.

_The moon must still be affecting my spirits_, he mused, somewhat amused by the change in events.

"Just because I'm a villain does not mean I am incapable of love, you know," he whispered, as his hot breath chilled her to her spine. "I thought I had been incapable of such a weak emotion, but – _you_ are my weakness. I certainly hope the Spies trio won't find out, or I'm afraid you may be harmed."

Sam felt sick to her stomach. _He _was _**concerned**_ for _her_ well-being?

"Dear me, but I adore you," he said, pulling her close to him with his other hand around your waist. "Which reminds me, I still don't know who you are."

He moved so close, and, possessed with this wild idea that he was going to kiss her (actually, it wasn't so weird, because last night they did more than kiss), ran off. It was better he didn't know who she was, she thought. Better to avoid all the shame and embarrassment.

But he was too quick. Belatedly, she realized, him having been a WOOHP agent meant that he must be as good as fighting as she was, when it came down to that. He gripped her, in a death-like vice on her wrist that made her feel a little numb. "Please don't go," he said, as he ripped of her mask, but on seeing her face, streaked with tears, he froze in shock, comprehension dawning.

Sam didn't wait to see the expression on his face, as she turned away, running. Her bracelet slipped off her wrist, but she didn't notice it, as it fell onto the floor, where Scam picked it up. All she could think of was to get away, to go home, as tears continued to stream down her face and she, realized, all too late, that her heart had been shattered, broken into tiny pieces. Which was absurd, because she convinced herself she didn't love him to begin with.

She didn't realize how this revelation had shattered his world, and left him behind, confused, and for the first time, unsure of his next course of action.

---

_**Author's Note**_

_---_

_The revelation. I think this chapter was pretty predictable, but I love it, just as I love other S/cam moments. The angst is in. _

_I am so mean. :P_

_Read and review and I'll update soon,_

_lianneharmony_

_---_

_**References**_

_---_

_No particular references, but I think you'd remember the scene in __Cinderella__ where Cinderella loses her glass slipper. That pretty much influenced the scene where Sam's bracelet slips off her wrist. :)_

---

_**Shoutouts**_

_---_

_Thanks to __**Poison's Ivy**__, __**Cresenta's Lark**__ and __Beth__! You guys are awesome for reviewing! :)_


	6. Secret

**Masquerade Lovers**

---

_**Secret**_

---

Sam had forgotten her mask and bracelet her grandmother gave her as she ran down the stairs, pretty fast, considering her long train. She had hitched up her skirts, to make it easier for her to run in, although her heels made it a tad more difficult. She hoped he wouldn't follow her (although there was a part of her that wished he would – but that part was rebuked and Sam refused to think about it any more). All she needed to do was to leave for home. Quietly, she moved into the hallways, where no one was around. Sure, the cameras were watching her, but at least they couldn't say, "Hey Sam, where were you? Clover and Alex were looking for you last night!"

And that was exactly what happened, when she let her guard down and sagged against the wall in exhaustion. Jerry was going in the direction of the men's restroom, when he caught Sam sliding down the wall.

"Ah, Sam," Jerry said. Before Sam could decide whether to run or hide, or just stay, Jerry was in front of her, looking down. "I say, Sam, we were all worried last night. Where had you gone? Clover and Alex were worried, but then Clover thought you might have gone home with a man (Jerry cleared his throat to express his disapproval), but – Sam, are you all right?" He asked, peering closer.

"What? Oh, yes, I'm fine," Sam shook her head and attempted a weak smile. Jerry did not look convinced.

"Where have you been, anyway? You're still in the same clothes as last night," Jerry said, observing her in her white dress.

"I fell asleep," Sam said, shakily. Which was partly the truth. He didn't ask if she'd fallen asleep with anyone, or who she fell asleep with. "On the roof."

"Ah," Jerry's face showed he was relieved. "I should have known. The cameras on the roof do not work from 9pm to 9am, and Alex said the last time she saw you was around 10:30pm last night, and now it's (checking his watch) barely 8:45 in the morning. We probably should turn on the camera all the time now, for security reasons, and to save us all heart attacks!" Jerry ended with a lame joke, but Sam did not seem to get it. Her expression changed.

Jerry thought the expression on Sam's face that followed this was one of relief, although the reason for the relieved expression he did not venture to guess. Maybe she drooled while she slept or snored or something, he was quite sure he did not care –

But, as a father would for his daughter, he was generally concerned about all three spies, and right now he was worried about Sam, who was in front of him and looked (not to mention probably was) weary and unhappy. "Seriously, Samantha (he said her full name to get her attention), are you sure you're all right?"

"Yeah," Sam nodded, trying to prevent herself from bursting into tears. She took deep breaths before saying, "Jerry, I really want to go back. I have a ton of things to do this morning, and I can't believe I fell asleep this morning.

Jerry's face softened, and he nodded in acquiescence. "Very well, Sam. I'll send a limo. Do you want to get a fresh change of clothes? We have some. Although, I must say, we've been told we're missing a costume. But that doesn't matter; it was for a guy, anyway."

_Scam_, Sam thought, distressed. "No," she said allowed. "I'm fine. Just a little tired. I'll take a bath at home, Thanks, Jer."

"No problem, Sam," Jerry said, and walked off. Go down to the main entrance, and you'll find a limo for you. In fact, I'll call it right now," he said, walking away, and Sam walked in the opposite direction, head down on the ground, with a pensive expression on her face.

Jerry went to call the limo, and then attempted to contact Clover on her X-powder. "Jer, what is it?" Clover's sleepy voice came. "I'm _tired_."

"I'm not surprised," Jerry answered, remembering the party last night, which had gone on until the early hours of the morning. He'd bet his money that once Clover got home, she did not go to bed immediately. "But listen, I found Sam wandering around the WOOHP corridors this morning. She looks pretty unwell."

"_What_?" Clover sat up, with a jolt, now wide awake, and she realized Blaine was gone, although she could see the soft imprint of a male's head on the pillow he slept on next to her. This momentarily annoyed her, before she registered what Jerry had said. "_What __**happened**_?"

"I have no idea. But she looks distressed. I thought I'd warn you," came Jerry's reply.

"Thanks Jer," Clover sighed as she snapped the X-powder shut, and sighed, falling onto the pillow.

"Clover?" The mention of her name caused her eyes to open. It was Blaine, standing across her, with two cups of black, steaming, caffeinated espresso. Clover smiled, and he gave her a cup, and she took it, inhaling its rich aroma.

"Hmmm," she sighed happily. "Just the way I like it in the early morning." Then, looking at him, she smiled, before frowning. "You shouldn't have disappeared like that, you know," she pouted. "I thought you left me!"

"Leave you?" Blaine laughed, taking a seat on the bed, next to Clover. He placed his cup of coffee on the bed-table nearest to him, and leaned close. "Why would I?"

"I don't know," Clover said, before falling back onto her pillow, spilling some of the espresso on her nightgown, which she had smoothed out in the interim. "Ouch!" She said, wincing from the pain of contact with scalding espresso. "That hurt!"

Blaine took the cup of coffee from Clover and also put that cup aside on the bed-table. "Clover, what's wrong? Have you heard from Sam yet?"

Clover rose up yet again and nodded, before resting her head on Blaine's shoulders, which was very nice and broad for her to do so. "Actually, Jerry called via X-powder to tell me he's seen Sam. Apparently she's been at WOOHP the whole time. She told Jerry she's fine, she just fell asleep on the roof, but Jer tells me she's unhappy. There's more to this than I thought. I'm pretty sure – but, Blaine, you don't think anything _bad_ happened to her?" Clover looked up for reassurance.

Blaine shook his head. "Sam's a smart girl, she knows how to take care of herself."

Clover buried her head into his shoulder. "But, she's not _strong_. I mean, she _is _the strongest physically, but – well, she's not a tough cookie like Alex, nor is she good at psychology like _me_," Clover said (she'd taken a degree in Psychology, since she wanted to save money on therapy because of all the economic crises. Alex called her a cheapskate, but using the material she learnt in class, she ended up making Alex cry without breaking a nail or touching her – or blackmail, for that matter). "She's just – intelligent, but that's the problem; she lives in her own little world sometimes, even though she's great at socializing and stuff – although not as good as Alex or I."

"Clover, she'll be fine," Blaine tried to reassure her, but Clover jumped off the bed, wrapping herself in a robe.

"I have to talk to Alex about this," she said, with a quick kiss on his lips. "I'll be back soon. I'll just be in Alex's room."

Blaine sank back onto the bed, and decided to finish his cup of espresso.

---

_**Author's Note**_

_---_

_Kind of a filler chapter, I know, but it's all leading somewhere, I promise! You know what I like: reviews! Be constructive, but if you like it, just say you do! Flames are accepted, as long as they do not insult and are constructive to begin with!_

_Until next chapter,_

_lianneharmony_

_---_

_**References**_

_---_

_Again, no particular references._

---

_**Shoutouts**_

_---_

_To__** waterbendergirl101**__,__** Cresenta's Lark**__,__** Redheaded Devil**__, __**Poison's Ivy**__ and __Beth__, I have four words:_

_**YOU GUYS ARE A-W-E-S-O-M-E!**_

_No seriously. It's your happy reviews that put a smile on my face, that I'm glad someone likes and does appreciate what I write about. So there. This chapter is for you guys. :) ___


	7. Part II: Explanation

**Masquerade Lovers**

---

**Part II: The Shadows That Lurk**

---

_**Explanation**_

---

Alex was sleeping comfortably enough in her room, when suddenly she was awakened by a hand shaking her. There were slaps too.

"Okay, okay, I'm awake! Stop with the physical assault – _**Clover**_! What is it _this_ time? Is Sam back?"

"No, she isn't."

Alex jumped out of the bed. "That's _it_!" Alex cried, taking a fighting stance. "We're doing this my way. C'mon, let's see Jerry! We have to find _Sam_!"

Clover giggled at the picture that Alex made when taking the fighting scene in a tank top and shorts, her hair unkempt. "Silly, Sam's going to be here soon!"

"Oh." Alex dropped her fighting stance. "So nothing bad happened to her, right." She sighed. "_Fine_, you were _**right**_, Clover and _I_ was _**wrong**_."

"I wouldn't be too sure about that," Clover mused. "I mean, when Jerry saw her, she was pretty distressed."

"_Distressed_? Clover, when did you learn those kind of words? Is Mali-U (gasp) making you (another gasp) _**smarter**_?"

"Oh, ha ha ha, lame much?" Clover asked. "Now that you've had your laugh, we have to go welcome Sam back. She was pretty upset when Jerry saw her."

"Why?" Alex asked.

"Now _that_ is the main mystery. If she only fell asleep, then she wouldn't have a reason to be upset, right?"

"Unless she missed an important appointment?" Alex interjected.

"Appointment?" Clover said, blinking.

"But you're right; Sam would have told us about an important appointment, because then we could raid her closet and pick out something impressive for her to wear."

"Like what? Peasant top, peasant skirt, sandals and a handbag?" Clover said in exasperation.

"Her fashion sense isn't as bad as you make it out, Clover. And anyway, you're going off topic. We're talking about what could possibly have happened last night to our poor best friend, Sam?"

Clover rolled her eyes. "Okay, I guess I got too caught up with fashion –"

"_Again_," Alex pointed out. Clover stuck her tongue out at Alex.

"But let's just go to the living room and wait for Sam, okay?"

"Sure thing," Alex said, as they entered the living room. Blaine was in the kitchen, making breakfast.

"Hey, Blaine. You sure do make yourself at home, don't you?" Alex said, as Blaine passed her a plate of pancakes slathered with maple syrup. Alex muttered a quick _thank you_ before stuffing the pancakes in her mouth.

"Don't see you complaining," Clover joked, as she gave Blaine a quick kiss. Blaine smiled.

"What was that for?" he asked his fiancé.

"Breakfast," Clover smiled. "A veggie omelet. Just the way I like it! Thanks, darling!"

"You two make me want to gag," Alex complained

"Jealous, much? What happened to mystery boy, anyway?" Clover asked.

The mention of _Mystery Boy_ – or David, to Alex (not that she'd confessed yet) – made Alex smile. "He's absolutely perfect. I just wonder –"

"Uh oh," Clover joked, before swallowing a tiny morsel of the omelet with an elegance that made Alex feel quite second-tier. "Delectable!"

"Whether he's _The One_. I'm not looking for perfect, or Prince Charming, I'm looking for Mr. Right."

At that moment, the door opened, and Alex shot up, pancakes still stuffed in her mouth. "I'll get it!" She ran open to the front door and saw Sam, still in her white dress. She hugged her friend, relief evident in her voice as she said, "Oh Sammie! Where were you? We were so worried!"

"_Sammie_!" It was Clover's turn to glomp on Sam, as she ran towards the front door, leaving Blaine in the kitchen (he couldn't come out on account he was cooking food and needed to be in the kitchen). "Are you okay? You should have told us!"

"I'm sorry, I really wasn't thinking," Sam said weakly. There was something in her voice that made Alex look hard at her.

"Sam? Are you _sure_ you're okay?"

Sam nodded, which took an effort, because all she wanted to do was be alone at the moment. "Yeah. Just a little sleepy still and I really need a shower."

"Okay then, don't let us stop you!" Clover said, in a falsely cheery voice. Not that Sam noticed. She looked exhausted and weary, Clover noted. _There's something here she's keeping from us_, she thought to herself.

Sam smiled, and turned to go, but Clover couldn't resist and called out, "Sammie, just one question!"

Sam turned slowly around – too slowly, if you asked Alex, making her wonder whether Sam didn't contract any virus or disease from last night – and looked expectantly at the other two girls.

"Prince Charming or Mr. Right?" Clover asked.

Sam thought for a moment, and said:

"_**Soul Mate**_."

---

_**Author's Note**_

_---_

_Another filler chapter. We see Sam through the others' eyes! What will happen next? Oh, is it a surprise visitor?_

_I'm so glad everyone thinks I update fast (I think I do), and I'm sorry I had to make you guys wait extra long for this chapter (which is really a filler chapter). Truth is, I'm already finished up to Chapter 31 (gasp), so you can guess it's going to be a long one; however, I had been out yesterday and yeah, no computer. Surprisingly, my life does not revolve around fanfiction (it should, I tell you! It should!), so yeah…:P_

_Reviews are love, and just the fact that you guys enjoy this story makes me happy!_

_lianneharmony_

_---_

_**References**_

_---_

_Soul Mate, Prince Charming and Mr. Right are traces of pop culture that couldn't help but find its way into the fic. :D_

_The One is also part of pop culture, but it's also referenced to in TS. I mean, Clover refers to Blaine as __The One__. When Alex asks her what this means, Clover says, "The One I like more than my shoe collection!" (Or another phrase similar in wordings meaning the same thing) And as far as Clover is concerned, getting a guy who beats shoes any day is __**L-O-V-E**__! :P_

_Clover still ragging about fashion? That's Clover, remember? Although she's not as bad as before… _

---

_**Shoutouts**_

_---_

_**Poison's Ivy**__, __**waterbendergirl101**__, __**Cresenta's Lark**__, __**Redheaded Devil**__ and __Beth__, for continuing to support lil' ol' me with your nice, nice reviews! :)_


	8. Musings

**Masquerade Lovers**

---

_**Musings**_

---

Sam let the water run in her bathroom, and let the white dress, no longer pristine and clean, but crumpled and dirty, slip off her shoulders. She examined herself in the mirror. Although a little sore, her body looked none the worse, and it seemed that her only problem was aching muscles, but after the exertion of the last few hours, it could only be natural. There was something different about her, though, and she realized her eyes weren't sparkling. It must have been the exhaustion. She pulled her hair back, and saw a mark that had never been there before. It wasn't that obvious, but to those who knew her well, like Alex and Clover.

She remembered how she got that mark last night –

Sam stopped the water and poured in some sea salt and bath soaps, forming lots of bubbles. The water was warm to her touch, and relaxed her senses. She stepped inside, slowly, and one by one, felt all her troubles slipped away. She felt her exhaustion gradually lessen, and she felt calm.

It seemed forever, before she had relaxed enough to rinse her body and get out. She wore a robe and wrapped her long red hair with a towel, turban-style, and entered her room.

She frowned immediately, as she entered. Something was wrong. Someone had been in her room recently. There was something different –

The balcony door was opened. That was the first thing she noticed. She knew she'd left it closed, because she had not been anywhere near the balcony when she entered her room, being too exhausted to do anything more than slip off her dress and take a bath. Quickly, Sam closed it, and upon turning around, noticed a red rose on the study table, with a card. It was beautiful, but when she picked it up without a thought, she did not realize it had thorns, and it pricked her, drawing blood from her thumb and middle fingers. With a small yelp of pain, she dropped the flower onto the floor, and bent down, to pick it up. She took out one of those little vases she had, and filled it with water, before placing the red rose in it. She picked up the card, which was scented with jasmine (her favorite flower), and read it, hesitantly:

**The red rose symbolizes you. Beautiful, but thorny, and painful.**

**Expect me soon.**

The words were printed out in dark black ink on the pale card. Instinctively, she knew who the rose and card were from. She took the card, wanting to throw it into the rubbish bin, but for some reason, she couldn't bring herself to do that, and instead, she opened one of her empty drawers and threw it in there.

Had she known that a pair of fascinating eyes was watching her, she would undoubtedly have chosen a different course of action.

As it was, she had not a clue. She quickly changed, and dried her hair with the towel, before pulling it up in a ponytail, which she had begun to do recently, making sure the mark on her neck was covered, as a means to control her unruly long hair. She opened one of her books and began to study, losing herself in her work. She knew it was for this reason that Alex and Clover had accused her of growing distant, but she always felt more in control when she was studying and working. It was as if she could actually do something about it –

The door opened with a bang, interrupting Sam's trail of thoughts. She spun around, her emerald eyes ready to murder. It was only Clover, but she could make do and murder her.

Although she didn't really want to get into Blaine's bad side. Rumor had it (meaning, from Britney) that he was much stronger than before, and was a formidable opponent when it came to fighting.

"_Sammie!_ Guess what?" Clover said, plopping onto her bed.

Sam sighed. "I'm a little busy at the moment, Clover. Why don't you cut to the chase and tell me what's going on?"

Clover pouted. "Come _on_, Sammie. Humor me a little! I'm going to get married!"

"Sorry, Clover." Sam shook her head. "Time and tide waits for no man – or girl, in our case. Make it snappy!"

"You're mean, Sam!" Clover stuck her tongue out.

"Oh yeah, that's _**real**__mature___of you, Clover," Sam rolled her eyes, but began to grin, in spite of herself. "I really can't guess! Ever since you started announcing that you were engaged and about to be married, well, crazy stuff has been happening."

"_**Britney's come to visit**_!" Clover yelled, as Alex and Britney entered the room.

"Oh my _**God**_! Britney!" For the first time since she reached home, Sam felt her mouth form a genuine smile. "How's married life? With a civilian, no less?"

Britney smiled happily, as Sam inspected the perfectly cut diamond ring on Britney's ring finger. "Charles is the most romantic person in the world! I admit, I had a moment of hesitation when I said _Yes_, because of getting married so young and all, but – when I saw him, looking at me with such love in his eyes (Sam froze at this) – I knew I wanted him to look at me that same way forever and ever! And it's been perfect ever since!"

"Does Charles know you're a WOOHP agent?" Alex asked, curious. Britney's face fell.

"No, he just knows that I work in the government," she sighed. "Which is true. But it aches me when he makes impromptu dinner reservations for the two of us and I'm not around, or any romantic dinner plan, for that matter. He is the sweetest person in the world."

"And loaded too, from what I can see," Clover's eyes twinkled in mischief.

"He _is _well-off," Britney admitted.

"You're _way _off!" Alex said. "He's _loaded_. Kind of convenient, huh?"

"He's a stockbroker," Britney smiled. "And when he's good at his job, we reap the benefits."

"It helps that WOOHP pays well too," Sam smiled. "Will we get to meet him?"

"Of course! We're staying at a nearby hotel. Beautiful room, overlooking the sea. I got switched with several agents, who have been relocated to Australia during your wedding."

"We wished we could have come to see yours," Clover said, mournfully. "We only got to see it via WOOHP's live TV, courtesy of Jerry."

"The old softie," Alex snickered fondly.

"How old is he, anyway?" Clover asked Britney her husband's age.

"Thirty-one."

"Seven years older than you? Isn't he going to want children, anytime soon?"

Britney's face turned pink. "We tried."

"Oh," Clover's hand flew to her mouth. "And –?"

Britney winked at Clover, but her face fell soon after. "I can't have a baby right now."

"Why not?" Alex's face fell as well.

"Because of WOOHP," Sam said, understanding.

"That's horrible!" Clover cried.

"WOOHP isn't taking any chances. Charles is a civilian and he needs to be as not associated with WOOHP as possible. They don't want any risk to the organization."

"That's pretty darned selfish, if you ask me!" Alex's face was contorted with anger. "It's your right to lead your life the way you want!"

"I don't want to endanger Charles!" Britney said, softly but firmly. "And I'm still young – it's not as if we'll never have another chance."

"Britney," Sam said softly.

Britney shook her head. Her eyes were filled with tears that would never fall. She was done crying about it, and had accepted her fate. Sam could read the expression on her face. _As long as Charles was safe – _that was all that mattered to Britney at that moment.

Clover left. "Does Blaine know about this?" She asked softly, but with a steely edge to her voice.

Britney shook her head. "I doubt it. I only knew about it after I married Charles."

Clover stalked out of the room.

"Poor Clover," Alex said. "I'll check on her. Sam, you stay with Britney."

Sam, who'd swept her hair back, as Alex's back was turned, nodded as Alex went out, but Britney was staring, transfixed at Sam. It was only for a short while, but Sam soon was conscious of Britney staring at her direction.

"Britney, are you all right?" Sam asked her friend. Britney nodded her head.

"I should be asking you that question, Sam. Alex and Clover told me they were worried about you last night, that you weren't acting yourself this morning. Are you sure _you're _all right?" Britney asked Sam.

Sam felt nervous and tried not to tremble (what was with all the trembling?). "I'm fine, Britney. Why?"

"Good. Then you wouldn't mind telling me this: _how the hell did you get that mark on your neck_?"

Sam's hand instinctively went up to her neck, the exact spot where Scam had branded her his, that night.

---

_**Author's Note**_

_---_

_Britney is too smart for Sam's good, right?_

_Will Sam reveal to Britney what happened? And when will Sam be able to expect to see __You-Know-Who__ (Tim Scam, not Lord Voldemort)?_

_Review and make me happy, and you'll be happy too!_

_lianneharmony_

_P.S.: So sorry for the late post. I'm in Iran, and it's darned difficult to get Internet connection. I got lucky. :)_

_---_

_**References**_

_---_

_It's never said that jasmines are Sam's favorite flowers, but they are white, fragrant flowers, and simple as well. Very Sam, I should think. Understated and classic._

_Red roses are supposedly a symbol of love, aren't they, Tim? (snickers)_

---

_**Shoutouts**_

_---_


	9. Evasion

**Masquerade Lovers**

---

_**Evasion**_

---

"Good. Then you wouldn't mind telling me this: _how the hell did you get that mark on your neck_?"

Britney's surprising question caught Sam off-guard. She'd absent-mindedly pushed her hair back, forgetting that Britney, being a close friend, would have known that the mark on her neck was no natural mark.

"I – I don't think that's any of your business," Sam said, finally. _Darn_, she berated herself as soon as the words came out of her mouth. _Now she knows there's something_.

"I would be correct in assuming neither Clover _nor_ Alex know about the mark on your neck, do they?"

Sam nodded slowly. Britney came and sat down next to Sam.

"Then what's wrong? I know it must have been a man who gave you that mark, and I know you wouldn't settle for just anyone. If you had really let a guy do that to you, you must have really trusted, really loved, that man. Just tell me, what's the matter?"

Sam was silent, unsure of what to say.

"You can tell me, you know. I promise I won't tell anyone," Britney said gently.

Sam later told herself it was because Britney, although a close friend, wasn't either Alex or Clover, so she wouldn't judge her, be as disappointed in her (as she felt they must be if ever they found out) as she thought they would be if they knew what happened. But how could she go about the story, without revealing too much of what had happened? How could she tell the truth and not reveal the whole truth, and yet not tell a lie?

Sam drew in a deep breath. "You promise?" Sam said, nervously.

Britney gave a faint smile. "Of course. And I'll go first and tell my own secret first."

"You have a secret?" Sam asked.

Britney nodded. "You remember I wrote to you telling I met Charles at a party where I was undercover?"

Sam nodded.

"I did."

Sam frowned. "I don't see how that's a secret. You already told us _that_."

"It wasn't quite that, you see." Here, Britney drew in a deep breath. "I did meet him there, but he was part of my mission."

"So he knows about WOOHP?"

Britney nodded. "And he's been against the idea from day one of our relationship. I love him so much – and I know how much he loves me. But _Sam_, I'm really scared, and I can't leave WOOHP. Not now at least, not at the moment. And this is driving a wedge into our relationship."

"He seemed like the perfect man," Sam couldn't help saying. Britney nodded.

"He is. Even when I was working with him, he always insisted on my well-being, even though he couldn't fight to save his life. And they say chivalry is dead," Britney gave a brittle laughter.

"Oh Britney," Sam said awkwardly, not knowing what to do. But Britney did not need prompting.

"I feel so confused. I can't leave WOOHP; they won't let me – and I can't let them hurt Charles."

"Why would they hurt Charles? Why would they prevent you from leaving?" Sam asked. Blinking, Britney shook her head.

"I have said too much, Sam. And you haven't told me anything," Britney answered, pointedly.

"It's nothing important. I met some guy in a mask, and fell asleep on the roof."

"Did you sleep with him?" Britney asked.

Sam's silence was taken as a yes. Britney's mouth formed a small 'o' of surprise.

"Why?"

That question shook Sam out of her reverie. Why indeed? She'd only known that guy for a short while under his anonymous persona, and before she knew it, they were kissing underneath the moon –

"I don't really know," Sam finally said.

"Indeed. Couldn't fight the moonlight, I suppose. It _was _a full moon, last night, Alex told me."

Sam managed a smile in spite of herself. "It was moon-madness, I suppose."

"It's still a part of you, Clover noticed, although she didn't say so in such succinct terms. And I have to agree. For you to have – well, it couldn't have been all moon-madness."

Sam remembered how before he'd seemed so right for her. They shared the same opinions, the same ideas – it was uncanny, the similarities between them. And yet they were fighting on different sides. A smile formed on her face as she forgot that she was supposed to be angry, to be thinking of those memories as repugnant to her, because they weren't, really. But they had to be, and that is what she had forgotten.

Britney noticed the secret smile, but said nothing. Instead, she asked Sam, "Are you going to see him again?"

That wiped the smile off Sam's face. "No," she sad, the sadness traceable in her voice and she felt somewhat dejected, before she tried to maintain an impassive expression on her face. She succeeded, but it was a case of _too little, too late_.

Britney frowned. _Why not?_ She thought. She wanted to ask Sam out loud, but she'd already moved to her study table, and opened up a book. She wasn't going to learn anything from Sam now, but she'd keep an eye out for opportunity, to learn what really happened to Sam last night. It was her duty, as a friend.

---

_**Author's Note**_

_---_

_Filler chapter, but if you look closely, it simply develops the story. Can't fight the moonlight? More like can't fight love._

_On a different note, Iran is awesome. Except for the lack of internet connection. That's awful. But I see all my darling cousins and I'm glad. ___

_Review and enjoy!_

_lianneharmony_

_---_

_**References**_

_---_

"_**Indeed. Couldn't fight the moonlight, I suppose. It was a full moon, last night, Alex told me."**_

_That line was influenced by the song __Can't Fight the Moonlight__ by Leann Rimes._

---

_**Shoutouts**_

_---_

_To everyone who read and reviewed and loved and waited oh-so-patiently. I haven't had much time to just put this up. :( Like last time, where you see I forgot to put shout-outs. No matter, you know who you are… :)_


	10. Outing

**Masquerade Lovers**

---

_**Outing**_

---

Five days had passed since the said incident, and Sam thought she'd gotten over it pretty well, considering she couldn't tell anyone and it being her darkest secret she'd ever be able to keep. She only prayed it would not come to light. She remembered some of the secrets she'd tried to keep from Alex and Clover ended up in straining their friendship, but she needed to. She wouldn't know how they would react if they found out, and honestly, she really didn't want to.

She was in her bed, resting. She tried to get up, but felt really sick. She knew she shouldn't have let Clover make her sample some of her cooking, but as a good friend she did. Clover had been proudly showing off some of her newfound culinary abilities (that she'd learnt from Blaine, who swore he'd make a chef out of her, although Sam sincerely doubted it, because there was that one time in eighth grade where Clover very nearly failed Home Economics because instead of making a chocolate cake, she'd made a rock-substance slathered with what seemed to be chocolate icing, which gave poor Mrs. Jennings – their Home Economics teacher at the time – a nice rest in the hospital. Thankfully for their future Home Economics teachers, Clover did not ever attempt baking or cooking after that incident – until now). Clover had made a simple chocolate cake, and begged Sam, as the nearest person (and only person actually stupid and willing enough) to try the chocolate cake. She immediately threw up, managing to get to the bathroom in time.

"Oh my _God_, Sammie! Are you all right?" Clover asked, worriedly.

"I – I don't think you should offer anyone of that cake, Clover. At least not _that_ cake."

Clover frowned. "Are you sure? It seemed really good, if I do say so myself. Maybe I should check, taste it a little –"

"_**No**_, don't even try to poison yourself. Maybe you should make another cake to surprise Blaine and the others (Blaine had gone out for a fitting of a wedding tuxedo. The affianced couple had decided to have a _Beach Wedding/Island in the Sun _theme), but not that one. I'll tell you something though – the texture was pretty good," Sam said, trying to cheer up her crestfallen friend.

"Okay, Sam. I – I'm really sorry."

"No problem."

She'd been sick since then, but somehow managed to be dragged along with Alex and Britney to the mall to look for the bridesmaids' (that would be Alex, Britney and Sam's) dresses today. They decided to look for bridesmaid dresses first, because Alex had a date with mystery guy and Sam had a task, and it would take less time to search for the perfect bridesmaid dress. Clover also had a coursework project to complete and hand in by today, but hadn't even started on it and would probably ask for an extension (although whether she would get the extension would be doubtful, since Clover had already asked twice, but hey, third time's the charm).

"How about this?" Alex asked, taking a beautiful dress and showing the rest. It _was _pretty. It was a form-fitting winterberry spaghetti-strapped dress made out of silk that ended half-way above the knees. Skimpy enough for her, but _too_ skimpy for everyone else.

"I don't think so, Alex. No offense meant," Britney told her. "But I just don't think Sam and I would look good in that color. And anyway, I doubt Charles would approve if I had worn a dress that striking and skimpy."

"It _is _beautiful," Clover agreed. "Sam would look good in it though. Sam wears pink exceptionally well for redheads. But it wouldn't go with the theme, anyway. Remember, the theme is _Island in the Sun_."

"I think that dress would make all of us look like Scarlet Women, Alex," Sam said, thoughtlessly, and realized what she'd said. That brought a blush to her cheeks.

Alex and Clover laughed. "Sam, you're such a conservative. No wonder you're still a virgin at twenty-three!"

Britney frowned, but wisely said nothing.

_I'm not really a virgin_, was the first thought that came into Sam's mind. The blush on her cheeks was more noticeable and she felt her cheeks getting hotter. _After Tim Scam_, and suddenly Sam found herself – yet again – with memories she'd worked so hard to put aside came flooding her mind. She admitted some of them were pleasant, but then, too late, remembered that those memories were associated with Tim Scam, and were supposed to be repugnant to her. Yet, for some reason they weren't, and yet –

_This was __**ridiculous**_, Sam groaned. _Can't I think of anything now, without making it into something that revolves around Scam? It's not as if my life revolves around him – which it shouldn't_.

She was having a stupid inner turmoil, and found herself _crossed in love_, as Mr. Bennett (from _Pride and Prejudice_) would have noted. She was filled with disdain for those stupid heroines who were forbidden to be with their heroes (case in point: _Romeo and Juliet, West Side Story, Wicked, Tess of the d'Urbervilles_, etc. etc., all of which she hated with a passion). And now she had become one of them –

No, she had not. Because she'd have to be in love with Tim Scam for her to be one of those lovesick heroines, and she was completely and utterly _**not**_ in love with Tim Scam, who was a villain and a sociopath and would do anything to murder her and her friends. So the idea really was stupid. Because, she was, again, _**not**_, and she repeated, _**not**_ in love with Tim Scam (emphasis on the _**not**_). Because she never fell for villains who were out to get the princesses, and it was only a single _night_, for Heaven's sake. Who had ever fallen in love over a period of one night? It was not even a whole day!

This was more than ridiculous. It was outright impossible, or so she thought. There was no way she was going to think about _Tim Scam __**loving**_her, or anything that related her to Tim Scam and a possible relationship. It was ludicrous, and now she was repeating herself. What was she, some crazy love-struck fool? Which she wasn't, because you'd have to be in love to be love-struck, and she was most definitely _not_ in love with –

Oh, for heaven's sake! She'd done it again. Made everything she thought revolved on a certain person whom she shouldn't even be thinking about – she was thinking about that said person far too much for her peace of mind and far more than she deserved. She would not do it again.

She forced herself off this trail of thought because it was useless to have this sort of conversation in her head, and anyway, she was repeating herself things she already knew and the best way to forget about all of this was to focus on the task at hand, which was finding a bridesmaid dress and –

"How about this one?" Clover held up another lovely dress. It was strapless, which Sam was not sure of, but it was made of a gauzy, chiffon-like material, which was a dark, forest green color, upon which flowers of many different colors formed patterns. The skirt was supposed to reach just below the ankle and flared.

"That looks amazing, Clover," Alex said. "The skirt really is _too long_ (Clover glared at her, and Alex grew afraid and finished the latter part of her sentence in a rushed manner) _but-it's-perfect-and-I-love-it_." Alex breathed out in relief, and Clover looked mollified.

"I love it," Britney said. "It would look perfect on everyone. And it looks perfect and in-theme. Great choice, Clover!"

Clover looked decidedly pleased and turned to Sam. "What about you, Sam? What do _you_ think?"

Sam slowly nodded. In truth, she thought that the dress was one of the most beautiful ones she'd seen. "It's absolutely stunning, Clover. Aren't you afraid we'll draw attention away from the blushing bride?"

Clover shook her head. "As _if_, Sam. I will find the most beautiful gown imaginable and wear it, but I need you guys looking your best, because otherwise it'll reflect badly on me, of course."

She turned to the sales assistant nearby and said, "We'll take this one!"

The sales assistant nodded. "Very well, Miss. I'll get the measuring tapes –"

The sales assistant barely had time to turn around when suddenly, the four girls were sucked into a tunnel – one they knew led towards WOOHP.

"Just my luck," Clover yelled, as they spun in circles down the tunnel, before landing on the couch on a heap. "While we're making wedding arrangements, I get sucked down and WOOHPed here."

"Jerry, is something the matter?" Britney asked, concerned.

"Of course girls," Jerry's face was grim. "I have been notified that several of the prisoners at the WOOHP detention facility have escaped."

_Oh no_, Sam thought.

She wasn't ready to face him again. And yet, now, it seemed that it would be inevitable for them to meet, and sooner, rather than later.

_**Expect me soon**_, he had warned her in the note.

He must be psychic, or she just wasn't seeing the obvious.

---

_**Author's Note**_

_---_

_The action starts __**rolling**__. Muahahahaha!_

_Poor Sam. She isn't ready for their next encounter – or __**is she**__?_

_(Gasps)_

_Hope you enjoyed this! Don't forget to tell me what you think!_

_lianneharmony_

_---_

_**References**_

_---_

_WOOHPing? That's from the TS series, remember?_

_As for Pride and Prejudice, Romeo and Juliet, West Side Story, Wicked, Tess of the d'Urbervilles, if I owned them, I'd be rich. Which I'm not. And I don't, except for an ebook of Pride and Prejudice. Now __that__ I wish I owned. :( Sadly it belongs to the genius formerly known as Jane Austen._

---

_**Shoutouts**_

_---_

_**Cresenta's Lark**__, __**Guardian of Courage**__ and __Beth__ are awesome because they reviewed. You guys make me smile! :)_


	11. Assignment

**Masquerade Lovers**

---

_**Assignment**_

---

"That's nothing new," Clover grumbled. "You interrupted my wedding plans for _that_?"

"The sales assistant has already been informed to deliver three dresses of the kind you were wearing to your penthouse, in Alex's, Britney's and Sam's sizes."

Clover's eyes went wide. "Wait, how would you know?"

"WOOHP has connections," Jerry said. "All leading wedding companies in California have been notified about you looking for wedding-related items and should they come across four girls of your description they will give exactly what you need."

"Somehow, I don't think I'm making the wedding plans anymore," Clover mused.

"So, Jerry, who anyway escaped the WOOHP prison facilities?" Sam said, thinking she should have told Jerry when she saw him on Saturday after _That Night_ that Tim Scam escaped and avoid this whole mission to catch him.

"Well, almost the whole of LAMOS," Jerry said.

"No kidding," Alex said, eyes widened. "How did they do it? They barely have a brain between them!"

"Don't underestimate villains. Especially Terry and Scam," Britney said, darkly.

"Actually, of all the villains associated with LAMOS, Tim Scam did not escape. He has been safely ensconced within the WOOHP facility since you girls captured him. The villains who escaped are: Terence Lewis, Helga Von Buren, Myrna Beesbottom and Boogie Gus."

_Impossible_, Sam's eyes widened.

"Really?" Alex said. "I thought he was the smartest of the lot?" She continued, referring to Scam.

"He's escaped," Sam said to herself.

"Excuse me?" Clover said, turning to her red-haired friend.

Sam realized she'd spoken aloud. She felt her face get hot. "_He's escaped_," she said, more loudly this time, and more firmly.

"GLADIS, please show the spies the camera surveillance of Prisoner #3557."

"Prisoner #3557, Name: Tim Scam, Charges: 1 count of Sedition, 1 count of Homocide, 23 counts of –" GLADIS began, as she searched the WOOHP database of camera surveillances.

"That's enough, GLADIS," Jerry said. "Just the camera surveillance, please."

The camera surveillance was placed on the large screen. The four girls and Jerry saw a man, who was Tim Scam, lying in his tiny bed in the 6 by 6.

"No," Sam said, breathlessly. "He must have escaped. Otherwise –"

"Otherwise?" Britney interjected.

Sam tried to use logic. "Okay, Clover said he was the smartest of the group. So, for the others to have been able to get out, he must have gotten out first, right?" She turned to Jerry. "Where's the food trays?"

"Near the door. They usually are disposed of at regular intervals where the floor gives way and the plates fall into the incinerator."

"Well, rewind then," Sam said.

Jerry ordered GLADIS to rewind. Tim Scam was doing the same thing, again and again, until she came to a part where he was laying down.

"He's done that for twenty-four hours straight!" Britney exclaimed. "Impossible!"

"How can he?" Clover asked.

"He must have been able to hack the security systems," Sam said, realization dawning upon her. "And since alarms wouldn't go off as long as he was believed to be inside the room when the guards believed him to be trapped inside there the whole time, no one would care or be the wiser!"

"Of course!" Britney said. "While he was hacking the WOOHP security system, he'd have needed to fool the cameras!"

"How could he access the WOOHP security systems from there?" Alex pointed out.

Jerry sighed. "This is _serious_." He typed some instructions into his computer (and GLADIS responded with, "Infra-red scans now being reinstalled.") and frowned, beads of perspiration on his forehead. "However he did it – (his computer screen beeped) I have received confirmation that Tim Scam has indeed escaped."

"And we have to catch him and his band of villains, I suppose," Clover sighed. "This is _so _not how I imagined my wedding celebrations would go."

"Clover, the world _does not revolve around your wedding_," Sam said, irritated. The last thing she wanted to do was to face Tim Scam and at the rate things were going it would seem pretty likely that she would.

"Uh oh," Alex said. "No, Clover, I'm sure Sam didn't mean –"

"Well, I'm sorry, Sam," Clover said. "I'm sorry I pay too much attention to what is supposed to be the most important time of my life. Things aren't going well for me at this point and I think I'm allowed to wallow in self-pity."

"You're not the _only_ one with things on your mind, Clover," Sam said, annoyed. "We all have our problems."

"Oh yeah?" Clover asked. "What's yours? Oh, I'm going to get less than an A+ in my next exam? Oh _please_, Sam."

"_Enough!_" Jerry commanded, his voice, after Sam's and Clover's, was like distant thunder.

"That's unfair, Clover," Sam said, turning aside. Tears were beginning to well up and she was afraid to speak, fearing her voice would crack up with emotion. She _never_ lost to Clover, especially not in petty arguments such as this. What was she, pregnant?

_Oh shoot_, Sam thought, feeling sick. _No, I can't be._ She shook of the thought, an involuntary shudder coursing through her body, which did not go unnoticed by Britney. There was no sure way of knowing, because it had only been a few days past when she was supposed to have her period, and she hadn't been worried about pregnancy at all, until now.

After a while, she turned to Jerry. "Jerry, if it's okay with you, I think I will skip this mission. I feel unwell."

Alex's and Clover's eyes went wide, while Britney's frown grew deeper. Clover began to feel the slightest bit guilty, feeling that she'd unfairly taken out her frustrations on a wedding that was at least four months away on Sam and the rest. Alex, however, was surprised at Sam's change.

_Sam never misses a mission if she can help _it, Alex thought, confused. _Her whole life revolves around WOOHP and studying_.

Jerry himself looked perturbed by this sudden change in events. "Why, yes, Sam. The three of you girls (meaning Alex, Britney and Clover) are quite capable of handling the mission on your own. If need be, we could ask Blaine or Dean to help out."

"Thank you, Jerry. I – I think I'll go home now. I don't feel so good," Sam said.

The other girls stared at her, as Jerry told her to wait for a car to take her home. Britney shook her head.

"I wonder, could Sam be pregnant, perhaps?" Britney unknowingly asked that aloud.

Alex laughed. "Don't be silly, Britney! Hey, that rhymed!"

Clover added, "Britney, you have to have sex to be pregnant. And Sam's a virgin. Like _duh_!"

"I was hoping you would have grown out of your Valley Girl accent, Clover," Jerry remarked, randomly.

"Hey, once a Valley Girl, always a Valley Girl," Clover shrugged.

Britney had grown quiet, while Alex laughed and Jerry ordered GLADIS to provide the girls with their gadgets.

---

_**Author's Note**_

_---_

_Is Sam pregnant? What do you think?_

_Sam bailing out of the mission? Hell has frozen over, hasn't it? No, it hasn't? But Sam really did bail out! What's going to happen?_

_Love a cliffhanger, don't you think?_

_Review, if not for the sake of the story, then for the sake of my sanity! I agonized over this chapter (and the ones that followed)! It wasn't easy! Besides, I promise to be more regular! Really! But you have to review too, lol. OMG, I'm like a review-addict. But seriously. I would love to update every day, but I like to see what you think before I update. That's why I haven't updated all 31 in one go._

_But do tell me what you think. :)_

_Love, _

_lianneharmony_

_---_

_**References**_

_---_

_Valley girl is a pop culture reference to girls in California, like Clover. :)_

---

_**Shoutouts**_

_---_

_**Cresenta's Lark**_**, **_Beth__ and __**Redheaded Devil**__, for giving in and reviewing. You guys get cookies. :)_


	12. Danger

**Masquerade Lovers**

---

_**Danger**_

---

Sam took the limo home, stopping shortly at the pharmacy to get a pregnancy kit (not that she told the chauffeur), hoping to drown herself in her studies. She had that test, after all, and even though WOOHP had very kindly asked the university to _please excuse Samantha if she is unable to take the tests_, now that she was going to have to, she might as well get cracking.

It was all quiet in the penthouse. Sam didn't expect that. Sure, Alex, Britney and Clover were off somewhere, but she was pretty sure Blaine would be around.

Actually she wasn't. With all the wedding arrangements, Clover and Blaine had erratic schedules. She went to the bathroom first to use the pregnancy kit.

She sighed in relief when it displayed negative. At least she wasn't pregnant. It must have been stress. As for being pregnant? That would have been too terrifying. And yet – what if she were? She sighed. It came to a surprise to Sam that if she had the child, she wouldn't have minded. She supposed it was a maternal instinct, not that ridiculous idea that she actually loved the would-have-been father. And yet – she couldn't help wonder what his reaction would have been like. Joy, perhaps? Or hatred? She shuddered. Perhaps some chocolate would soothe her. Yes, some chocolate for her soul. She'd feel better.

She walked into the kitchen and nearly screamed.

There was blood everywhere, and Blaine was bleeding to death. He'd lost too much blood, Sam realized in dismay.

"Oh my goodness, _Blaine_!" Sam rushed and tried to feel for a pulse. There was a slight, faint one.

"Clover?" Blaine asked.

"No, Blaine, it's Sam," Sam said, relieved. "Who did this to you?"

"I – I – find Clover," Blaine said, in a raspy voice, and groaned. He was too weak. Sam saw bruises on his skin. There had been an intruder, and the intruder must have attacked Blaine – but why?

_Oh God, Clover _–

She immediately took out her X-powder and tried to get hold of Jerry.

"Sam, what is it?" Jerry asked.

"It's Blaine," she said. "I came home and found him bleeding to death. I think it must have been an intruder. I don't know what happened. I don't think it was a robbery, there doesn't seem to be anything missing. Get WOOHP agents here, please and send for paramedics."

Jerry looked stunned. "Of course. Standby. We'll be there in five."

She tried to get some cloth to stop the bleeding. It seemed like a lost cause. Before five minutes passed, Jerry, accompanied by some agents, one of whom she recognized as Dean, had reached the penthouse, and shouted, "Samantha, where are you?"

"In the kitchen," Sam called back. "Come quickly!"

"Good Lord," Jerry uttered, upon entering the bloody kitchen. Sam carefully stepped away from Blaine's bleeding body and allowed the trained paramedics to do their job. "This was done well, Agent. You're a real hand." They removed Blaine's body and took him to the ambulance, and only then did the scene finally sink in.

Sam couldn't find it in herself to thank them for the compliment. She was too struck by the horror of the whole scene.

Dean said, "Who'd want to do this?"

Sam shook her head. "That's what we have to find out. An agent is compromised; perhaps the person responsible will be trying to get to us."

"_Us_ meaning Agents Alex, Britney, Clover and yourself?" One of the other agents asked. "Why?"

"We have no idea. Of course, we have managed to make plenty of enemies, with all the villains we've captured, but so far, no one has ever been able to overcome an Agent."

"Any sign of forced entry?" Another agent asked. Sam shook her head.

"I haven't had time to check," Sam said. "But Agent Blaine is trained in such situations. He should have been able to overcome any intruder."

"Sir, I think you'd better check this out!" One of the agents, who had been checking the whole of the house called over in the direction of the back door. It had been broken down.

"Sir, right here?" This time it was from the agent checking the girls' rooms. Sam, Jerry and two more agents rushed towards the voice. It lead to Clover's room, which had been ransacked.

"Oh goodness," Sam said, beginning to feel sick. "What about the other rooms?"

"They're equally messed up."

"But nothing seems to be missing, see?" Sam said. "My grandmother's diamond set; the locket and earrings are here."

"But the bracelet is missing," another agent pointed out.

Sam recollected with a jolt that she'd not had it when she got out of her white dress during Blaine and Clover's engagement party (_Oh Heavens, must everything always lead back to that night_? She thought miserably), but couldn't for the life of her remember what exactly happened, only a feeling of bliss.

"I think I lost it at WOOHP headquarters." For some reason, Sam didn't cry. The set was one of her prized collections and yet – she had a feeling that she couldn't cry, perhaps because it paled in comparison to the event that had just happened.

"We have to tell Clover and Alex – oh God, how are we going to tell Clover?" Sam felt herself shake. Clover would be hysterical, at best.

"We have to wait, Samantha," Jerry told her. This was said in a fatherly manner.

"The thing I don't get," Dean said, "Is why anyone would want to hurt Agent Blaine for no reason. Whoever is doing this must want to send a message to you girls, because there's no point beating up someone close to one of you just for the heck of it. There must be a note, somewhere."

"Let's look for one in the kitchen," Sam suggested. "If we had to start anywhere, here would be the best place to start."

It seemed forever that all the WOOHP agents, including Jerry, Sam and Dean were looking for the paper. Sam was the one to find the missive. The words on the white paper were written with red ink – no, blood. And it seemed as if it were written in blood. It read:

_**Humanity must be controlled to prevent sins from causing the flow of blood.**_

_**You will be mine.**_

Everyone gathered around as Sam read those words, her body shaking uncontrollably. Some psychostalker was after them –

She shuddered.

---

_**Author's Note**_

_---_

_Do you guys know who the psychostalker is?_

_That was a scary chapter, actually, IMHO!_

_What did you guys think? Sam wasn't pregnant; sorry to everyone who thought she was – Clover truly is a bad cook!_

_Anyway, I'm rewriting the unposted parts because I didn't like the way it was going, but don't worry: it will updated soon, because the unwritten parts are after Chapter 30. I may update it for a bonus after the fic is done, but I don't know._

_Anyway, enjoy!  
_

_lianneharmony_

_---_

_**References**_

_---_

_I've been watching too many horror movies. It shows when you read Blaine's almost-death scene._

---

_**Shoutouts**_

_---_

_Thanks go to __Beth____(as always), __**Guardian of Courage**__,__** Redheaded Devil **__and __**Yashi Inuzuka**_. _You guys rock, and this chapter is for you._


	13. Villainous

**Masquerade Lovers**

---

_**Villainous**_

---

Tim Scam smiled to himself. It had been more than a week since he made his escape from WOOHP, and yet, no one seemed to have noticed – except possibly that redheaded girl, Samantha. She _knew _he escaped, and yet nothing had happened since, according to his excellent observation. He'd watched her when she went to her penthouse, saw her bathe, and saw her pitiful attempts to wash out her sins and deeds of the night before by rinsing her body with pure, sparkling water. His eyes saw every curve and plane of her body, and he remembered every bit of it. He saw her dry herself and prick her finger on the thorns, drawing ruby red blood out. He saw her carefully arranging her hair in such a way that she was able to cover the mark of his lips on her neck. He observed her with a kind of focus he usually had when planning his next move.

He observed her with a kind of interest that made him feel like an outright pedophile, since he was eight years older than her. She was very young, only twenty-three, going on twenty-four, whereas he was now in his early thirties. He tried to ignore the twinge of guilt that he began to have, when dealing with her.

But he had to make his way to the mountains, which were still snowy-capped. There he would meet Terence Lewis, Myrna Beesbottom, Helga Von Gugen and Boogie Gus, and plot to annihilate the spies. It was a pity, now that he really knew what Samantha was capable of: how intelligent, how beautiful (he'd known she was attractive, but after that night, he could no longer deny it), how _sensual_ she could be –

Did she even know what she was doing to him now? She was a temptation that could prove hard to resist, and could possibly be his downfall.

_No_, his eyes narrowed. He'd worked too hard. And it was her naïve, stupid fault. She'd have to go. Then temptation would no longer be there, and he could be free.

It was unbearably chilly. Why the hell did he agree to such a God-damned, God-forsaken isolated place like this? Terence had said that once, a villain had died here, thwarted by WOOHP. He knew that the mountains were popular places for villains, especially desolate ones like here, but _honestly_ –

He saw Terence in that ridiculous Napoleon-inspired costume. That guy had no sense of style and was a disgrace to all the low-life scum of villains in the world. Again, he berated himself for even considering joining LAMOS. With crazy idiots of villains running the whole thing, he was surprised they hadn't met their doom earlier.

But then again, there was strength in numbers. And he would need all the strength he could get to overcome WOOHP.

"As we are all here, we have finally been avenged," Terence announced to the rest of LAMOS. Here was where Terence made some sad speech that would have Helga Von Gugen primping herself, Boogie Gus shaking his head and singing some demented 80s song (he could never enjoy listening to ABBA again), Myrna Beesbottom doing whatever stupid thing she was doing and himself fall to sleep.

And he really did. Not that Terence seemed to mind, though, Tim thought with a smirk when he woke up. He was just puffing and pimping himself so that he would feel as if they had actually managed to accomplish something. Which was true; they would have accomplished the very difficult deeds of:

_Wasting their time and looking like idiots._

_Annoying the spies._

_Wasting their time and looking like idiots._

(Points number 1 and 3 were the same because they _really, __**really**_ made themselves seem like idiots for the numerous times they confronted the spies and had their asses kicked into the WOOHP detention facilities).

There was noise from the outside, followed by a knock at the door to the abandoned cabin, where the LAMOS meeting was underway. "May I come in?" A voice asked.

"_**Who dares to interrupt the meeting of our great league of doom**_?" Terence asked in a thunderous voice.

Scam yawned. This should be interesting.

The door to the cabin at the mountains took that as invitation and entered. The person's features were surrounded by shadows. _How very anticlimactic_, Tim Scam thought, shaking his head. This villainous man/woman__stepped out of the shadows. It was a man.

"I hear you are enemies of WOOHP?" The man asked with an almost maniacal edge to his voice.

"Why'd _you _care, bro-thah?" Boogie Gus drawled. "Jus' 'cause we villains don't mean we ain't got anythin' to do with them crazed spa-yes."

The man looked almost coldly at Boogie Gus. "My name is Dr. Gelee. I was at odds with the spies, and I want my revenge on WOOHP. Humanity is too cruel and I want to remove a substantial proportion from the surface of the earth."

"And you come to a villains' hideout to seek an alliance?" Tim Scam asked, amused, while Helga Von Gugen laughed.

"The irony," Myrna Beesbottom laughed.

"I can be very helpful, I believe," Dr. Gelee said. "No one, with the exception of all of you now, is aware that I am alive. I presumably died in an avalanche hereabouts," Dr. Gelee stated, matter-of-factly. "I am the perfect person for an ambush attack. And I must say, I could greatly help you in obtaining technology."

"Well, Tim Scam (motioning to Tim) was a former agent of WOOHP, and he knows as much of WOOHP and his own inventions as we could possibly wish for. But as for the stealth attack, that is true," Terence agreed. "So, you would like to join LAMOS?"

The man blinked. And then smiled. "On one condition," he said. "No one will harm the WOOHP agent named Clover."

Helga Von Gugen was almost hysterical. "_**What**_? She _must _be disposed off, the good-for-nothing-thinks-she-knows-so-much-about-fashion _**brat**_!"

"Yuh," Boogie Gus said. "I mean, I'm no smarty-pants like them Terence an' Timmo-Scam, but I do think that them spies gotta be wiped off or they'll kill us men – and women," he said, quickly adding the last part under Helga Van Gugen's and Myrna Beesbottom's glare.

"Do not worry about Clover," Dr. Gelee said. "She'll reign by my side as my Queen, and will pose no threat to us."

Everyone else's jaws dropped. Tim Scam found that he was not alone in the numbers of bad guys who'd fallen in love with spies. Obviously, this nutter was one too.

Well, at least it was Clover, and not Samantha.

Tim Scam spoke first. "You are in love with her?" He asked Dr. Gelee.

"More than life itself," came the raspy reply.

"Does she love you?"

The man looked back at Tim Scam defiantly. "It doesn't matter. She will."

"You sound very certain," Terence said, idly. "Are you just joining us so that you can have Clover to yourself?"

The man shrugged. "I _know_ she will love me. The spies have fallen in love with villains before. At least that red-haired one did. Or at least date, since the attachment was too weak to call love. His name was James, and he was from London. Of course, he was taken down. And I heard about Kyle Katz. The spies were all enamored of him."

"Ohohohoho," Terence grinned. "So, Miss Perfect loves the dark side. How is surprising is _that_? You know, we could use this to our advantage."

Dr. Gelee shook his head. "No, after that incident it was very rare for her to grow close to anyone even if she fancied the person. No, my Clover is of a more malleable persuasion. She will more likely fall in love with me, than the red-haired spy would with any of you. No offence."

"Believe me, Dr. Gelee," Terence said, his voice sickly sweet. "I am no cradle-snatcher, and neither is Boogie Gus here. We wouldn't take her if you paid us a million dollars."

"Speak fo-ah yoursel', man! I wouldda!" Boogie Gus said, imagining himself in a vault full of green dollar notes.

Terence ignored Boogie Gus' outburst. "And Tim Scam here is a sadist and a sociopath with no emotions whatsoever. I doubt he'd want to form an attachment to any of those – _girls_ (this was said as if it were an expletive). Although – I wouldn't put it pass him from being able to seduce at least one of them. The red-haired one would be difficult, but the blonde and brunette should be simple. I remember a time that he told us he'd taunted the girls and used their mothers against them, even kissing one of them at a point, just to freak them out, even though they were at least fifteen years older than him."

Tim Scam thought back to that time with a certain degree of shame, but he wasn't focusing on that incident. Somehow, his thoughts ran back to Samantha, which he pushed away. At any rate, he did not know whether to feel glad or not at what Terence said. At least no one suspected him of having all those conflicting emotions stirring up within him like some lovesick fool.

Dr. Gelee's hands were clenched in a fist. "Clover _will_ be mine. I will join only if I will be able to have her to myself, and safely, too."

Actually, Tim was glad he had an opportunity to meet Dr. Gelee, who was obviously more vocal in his determination to pursue Clover.

"I am not sure whether you know of this, Dr. Gelee," Helga Von Gugen said airily (like the airhead she was). "But Agent Clover of WOOHP is engaged to be married to fellow WOOHP Agent Blaine."

"Indeed?" Dr. Gelee asked. Tim Scam was wary of the tone which he used. "Because right now, as we speak, Agent Blaine fights for his life."

---

_**Author's Note**_

_---_

_It was Dr. Gelee! I'm telling you! He's back! The psychopath… Grrr…_

_How will this affect the spies?_

_Oh, and Tim Scam really did kiss Stella. It was funny to see Clover's expression! (I'm mean! :P)_

_Boogie Gus is a dirty old pervert. That's right. And I didn't know how to write how he talks. So that's why the conversation is so weird._

_Until next chapter,_

_lianneharmony_

_---_

_**References**_

_---_

_ABBA. Awesome band. My favorite song from them is __Man After Midnight__. Hey, that makes me think of a possible fanfic/songfic! Ooooh! It's a pity Scam no longer likes it… :( _

---

_**Shoutouts**_

_---_

_So I know it was confusing, but __**Yashi Inuzuka**__ got it right. It wasn't Scam. He's not stupid. _

_Also thanks to __**Guardian of Courage **__and __Beth__, who reviewed. You guys keep me going! :D_


	14. News

**Masquerade Lovers**

---

_**News**_

---

"It's hopeless," Clover said. "We'll never be able to find them."

"I thought they had microchips installed," Alex said.

"Which Tim Scam probably helped them remove," Britney pointed out.

"Disastrous. So much work. Does that mean we'll have to wait until they strike first? What if it cripples WOOHP? We'll be like, powerless and they will be able to rule the world. Or whatever they want to do," Alex shivered.

"We should go back to WOOHP. I don't think we can find anything of use here," Britney said.

"I wish Blaine were here," Clover said, thinking of her fiancée. "Just when we're getting married –" Clover trailed off, remembering that Sam did not like her talking 24/7 about her imminent wedding. But Sam wasn't here. Still –

Britney dug up her X-powder and contacted Jerry. His hologram appeared.

"Jerry, it's us. We weren't able to find LAMOS at their original hideaway."

"You weren't?" Jerry asked. "Then we'll have to wait, I suppose."

"Yeah," Alex said.

"Sorry, Jer," Clover said.

"So what's our next course of action?" Alex asked.

"We go back to WOOHP, right Jerry? I mean, there's nothing for us to do now, but wait."

"Yes, but it may be too late. Still spies, there's something important you should know –"

"What is it, Jer?" Clover asked

"It is very bad news. I need all of you here."

"Jerry, what is it?" Alex insisted.

"It's best that you be here when I tell you guys," and Jerry ended the connection. The three girls looked at each other.

"Well then, we'd better hurry," Alex said.

"Yeah. Time and tide waits for no man," Britney said.

"Or she-spy," Clover added. They flew off into the air, with their jetpacks. Hopefully they'd be at WOOHP soon. Soon translating to six hours later. It was boring, to be sure, but they were far away. They were lucky they had enough fuel to keep them going until they reached WOOHP. Clover had been afraid that they wouldn't make it in time, but Britney assured the other two they'd make it.

They entered WOOHP and made their way to Jerry's office as soon as they could. To their surprise, not only was Jerry there, looking grim, but Sam was also there, her eyes filled with unshed tears.

"Oh dear, this doesn't look good," Alex said, weakly.

"Sam, what happened?" Clover asked. She wanted to tell Sam, "I'm sorry! I should have been more considerate!" but reasoned she could tell Sam later.

Britney's frown returned, and she shook her head. She already understood the implications of this. She knew, whatever had happened would cause someone – at least one person – to break out in tears. By the looks of it, Sam would be that one person.

"Oh Clover," Sam ran to her friend and hugged her. "It's Blaine."

"Blaine?" Clover's face was contorted in confusion. Then her eyes widened and her face froze in despair. "No – it's not what I think it is! I USERADDRESS \* MERGEFORMAT don't believe it!" She whispered, licking her dry lips.

Jerry looked down. "Clover, I'm sorry. Agent Blaine was attacked and severely injured. He lost a lot of blood. We – we are unsure he will ever wake up. He's not brain-dead, but the chances – the next twenty-four hours will be critical."

"_**No**_!" Came Clover's voice, now loud and strong.

"I'm so sorry," Sam whispered.

Clover held to her friend. It was enough, the simple word of condolence to clover. After all, there was a meaning behind it as well. She was sorry for the morning's behavior. They shouldn't have fought over something so petty. Clover nodded through bleary, teary eyes. Apology accepted. They were friend again, and Clover needed all her friends through this tough time.

Alex gasped, as Britney's face paled. They were in shock. Blaine was a good agent. How could he have been overcome?

"How many people?" Alex finally asked.

"We – we think there was only one intruder at the penthouse, which is where it happened, girls. At the kitchen."

"We were supposed to be getting married," Clover said. "_We were supposed to make wedding preparations, and get married, and __**live happily ever after**__, for Christ's sake! __**Who the hell would do something like this**_?"

"Did you use the LIAB to find out who did this?" Britney asked, referring to the WOOHP gadget _Lab In A Briefcase_, which was extremely helpful when it came to obtaining evidence.

"We did. We found a handwritten note that we believe was addressed to Clover in light of the situation, and also several fingerprints," Sam said.

"_**Who did this**_?" The words came out of Clover's mouth with pure hatred and venom. Alex shuddered at how wrong the tone seemed to be, coming from Clover's mouth. Clover was sweet, if self-centered, but she was never capable of pure, unadulterated loathing, the kind she was displaying now.

"We believe it was Dr. Gelee. Fingerprints match, and so does the handwriting."

"Presumed dead my foot," Alex said.

"Well, we've got to find Dr. Gelee," Britney said. "We should find the mountains where he supposedly met his death by an avalanche."

"He'll wish he never crossed me," Clover said, quietly, but the anger was evident in her tone. Alex shook her head. Clover really, _truly _cared for Blaine, and now that she was afraid he was gone it was like she snapped.

_Hell hath no fury like a woman scorned_, Britney had said to Alex once, and now, it had to be altered slightly. _Hell hath no fury like a woman deprived of her true love_. Clover had stopped crying, but Clover didn't seem like Clover, anymore.

"Let's go. Now," Clover said, firmly. "We have to take Dr. Gelee down, once and for all."

The three girls walked.

"Wait," Sam cried. The other three turned around. Sam had changed into her catsuit. "I'm coming with you. We have to stick together."

The girls all looked at each other. "Ready?" Britney asked.

"I was _born_ ready," Clover said.

"As much as I'll ever be," Alex said, managing a weak smile.

"Let's go, Jerry."

The floor gave way, and they fell into a tunnel leading to their transport. They were going via helicopter. And they would take Dr. Gelee down.

---

_**Author's Note**_

_---_

_**They know.**_

_Watch out, Dr. Gelee._

_So, here's hoping you guys enjoyed this! I know the past few chapters have been mostly fillers, and this one is probably not worth the wait, but my pendrive wouldn't be recognized and I had to wait longer to upload, so, sorry... :(_

_lianneharmony_

_---_

_**References**_

_---_

_Mostly from the show, especially LIAB._

_She-spy – sort of a reference to the TV series, __She-Spies__. Three beautiful ex-cons seeking to rid the world of peril, hmmm…_

---

_**Shoutouts**_

_---_

_To __Beth__ and __**Dani Mars**__, thank you guys for reviewing. I feel so honoured to have loyal reviewers such as yourselves, and I'm so sorry you guys had to wait ages for this chapter. I'll do anything to make it up to you guys - just name it!_

_Also, on that note, thanks also to the wonderful readers who have continued reading. I have so far over a 1000 hits! (Bliss)_

_I swear, the romance will come for you S/cam fans. Honestly. But in the world of TS, it's not always about the romance, and I'm sticking to that. :)_


	15. Den

**Masquerade Lovers**

---

_**Den**_

---

They scoured the mountains for life sources. It was in February, a little past the holiday season, but that didn't mean no one would be here. It was a ski resort, after all. And there was plenty of people and wild animals, if the infra-red scanner told them anything.

"If I were a villain, I'd take refuge in the most desolate area imaginable first, before I came out and mingle. So, let's scour the less popular area," Britney suggested.

They navigated the helicopter. It took at least 3 hours, before they came across anything promising. Alex took the position of checking the landscape at the bottom, to check whether it was suitable for human habitation.

"That's weird," Sam said finally. "I'm picking up six all close together."

"They could be a family," Britney pointed out.

"True – but generally whole families do not have the means to drop into the cabin during this time of the year. Children probably have school and all. But can we find the name under which the cabin was registered?"

Clover punched in the coordinates of the cabin.

**Owner: Georgia Fern**

**Age: 31**

**Occupation: Lawyer**

**Sex: Female**

**Marital Status: Unmarried**

**Nationality: Dual citizen (Dutch-American)**

**Country: Canada**

**Relatives: Parents deceased. No siblings.**

"I don't think Georgia would be here, do you? At least not with so many people," Sam remarked.

"I say we pay Georgia Fern a little visit."

"Clover," Alex tried to console her. "Do you really want to kill him?"

"Of course I do. I want to kill all the stupid, idiotic villains who should turn_ good _or _die, die, die!_"

"The psychologist has snapped," Alex muttered.

"Listen to us, Clover," Britney said in a calm and soothing voice. "Don't do anything rash, okay. Two wrongs don't make a right."

"We're all in this together," Alex said, firmly.

"And whatever happens will happen. We'll do our best, and Blaine will be okay."

Clover stared from one friend to another, and her voice cracked. "You guys," she said, softly.

The other three girls all pulled Clover and formed a group hug.

When they pulled apart, Sam said, "Let's do it."

The other three girls nodded, and parachuted down into the mountains, ready to face whoever lived in the cabin.

Ready to strike before the enemy strikes back.

---

_**Author's Note**_

_---_

_Ready for the showdown?_

_Hope you guys liked it!_

_lianneharmony_

_---_

_**References**_

_---_

"_**We're all in this together," Alex said, firmly.**_

_We're All In This Together – Oh, dear, I __hate__ HSM (especially the second and third movie – just makes me gag!), no offense to HSM fans (hey, the first one was nice)._

---

_**Shoutouts**_

_---_

_Beth__ and __**Dani Mars**__. You guys make typing this out and uploading all worthwhile._


	16. Entwined

**Masquerade Lovers**

---

_**Entwined**_

---

They managed to approach the cabin stealthily by sundown. Britney checked the area surrounding the cabin. Alex looked out for any coming villains. Sam checked the infra-red scanner. Clover – who had given up on murderous tendencies and bursting into waterworks – assisted Sam.

"They seem pretty far apart now," Clover said.

"Well, it could be because we are on the ground now, close to the cabin, or it could be because they are in different rooms," Sam reasoned

"There are five different rooms, I think, seeing as two of them are so close together," Clover replied. "Were you able to get the blueprints of the cabin?"

"Yeah, Britney was able to pull it off," Sam replied, absently. "You're right. Excluding the living room and the hall, as well as the kitchen and bathrooms, there are five – no wait, seven rooms. Perhaps two of the rooms are empty."

"All clear," Alex said, joining the two girls. "How is it, Britney? Any booby traps?"

"None that I can see."

"Does that make sense? To have a villain hidey-hole with no sensors? Or booby traps?"

"It's possible," Sam said. "If you're not expecting anyone."

"But it could just be a regular family vacation," Clover pointed out. She was suddenly hesitating.

Britney shook her head. "Better be safe than sorry. We have no sure way of knowing."

"I suppose if they're civilians they'll forgive us soon enough," Alex admitted.

The door to the cabin was locked. _Of course_, Britney groaned. Unless they exploded the door, they wouldn't be able to get in, and the plan to use Stealth to overcome whoever was in the cabin would go down the drain.

"Okay, guys, I need you to be very quiet," Britney said. "Like, super quiet."

"We get you," Alex hissed. "What are you going to do anyway?"

"The old-fashioned way of breaking and entering," Britney whispered back. "Picking the locks."

There was a soft _clink_ as they lock fell into place. Britney quietly turned the doorknob and found the living room empty. With hand gestures, she told the other girls there were people in the rooms.

"_Which ones have only one person?" _Alex mouthed.

Sam checked the scanner, and pointed to the four rooms.

"_We can take them out first, and when we're done, go for the second,"_ she mouthed.

"_Good idea," _Clover nodded. _"That one is mine_," she added, pointing to one of the doors.

"_I call dibs on that,_" Britney took the room opposite.

"_So, which should we take_?" Sam asked.

"_Well, how about the colors of the rainbow? __**Richard of York Gave Battle In Vain**__. Since you're green, and I'm yellow, and Clover and Britney chose opposite ends of the spectrum, how about you take the room in the middle closer to Britney. I'll take the one with the people nearer to Clover._"

"_That would work. We'd better hurry. It's getting dark."_

"_It's already dark. I wouldn't be surprised if we spent the whole night here."_

Sam nodded. _This place gives me the creeps. _Quietly, she turned open the door knob.

The room was dark. The only source of light was the dying rays of the sun.

It seemed to be empty. She walked to the room. No one around? That was weird. Someone _had _to be here besides her. She saw a single red rose on the bed. Her eyes widened. _It can't be! What are the chances?_

But it could. Quickly turning around, she saw a figure behind her.

"Well, well, Samantha. Seducing me in my own room now, are you?"

She'd chosen Tim Scam's room. Fate was working against her.

"You know, when I said expect me here, I didn't mean in this way."

The sky darkened, and the moon rose, and yet they stood there.

The silence became unbearable.

"Do you know why I'm here?" Her voice, unnecessarily hard, sliced through the heavy air of silence. One of his eyebrows lifted, and he bore an innocent expression.

"Now, how am I supposed to know that?" He began to approach her. Her arms moved up, ready to strike him, but he took them. "Are you trying to kill me, or are you trying to seduce me? I do not presume to know what goes on in that pretty little head of yours, Samantha," he said, running his had through her long, red-hair, and tracing the outlines of her face.

"Stop that!" She tried to yell, but it came out weak.

"Stop what?" She asked, innocently, almost absently.

"Stop playing with my head!"

"Samantha, are you telling me I have the power to control what goes through your mind?"

"_N-no!_" She stammered, hoping it sounded more forceful than it did to her ears.

He smirked.

She snapped, and tried to deliver a kick to his abdomen. He stumbled back a bit, his face impassive, but his eyebrows were raised. If Sam didn't know better, she would have thought he was shocked, or that it was a trick of the light. At any rate, he shook his head.

"Samantha, do you really want this to go down between us?"

"There is no _us_," she hissed, trying to deliver another kick, but he evaded her. "And don't try to lecture me on what I can or cannot do!"

"I'm not," Tim said, another smirk playing on his lips.

"Then don't act like a pansy. You have to go back to the WOOHP Detention Facility."

"Or what?" He said, just as she was prepared to land a blow on his torso. He grabbed her hands, and forced her to stare into his eyes.

"Or I'll put you there myself!" Sam said, angrily. She tried to yank her hands out, but only succeeded in stumbling onto the bed. It was easy for him to pin her down there.

Her eyes blazed with fury, like emerald fires, as he forced her still. There was something in the way that the light from the windows that escaped the curtains shone on her face, that instead of landing her a blow, one of his hands caressed her cheeks with the back of his hand.

"_You don't know how much you tempt me, Samantha_."

Sam could not bear it. That was it! How could he fight her and then make statements like that to her face? She hated him for playing with her mind. _She _was the one who was supposed to be in control, catching him and stuffing him into prison, which was where he belonged. She pushed him away.

"Stop it! Don't ruin it for me!" She said.

He was confused. "Ruin what?"

"You – _you are __**despicable**_!"

"Do you really mean that?" Scam asked, with a raised eyebrow.

"Of course I do!"

She launched herself at him, delivering a few blows before he struck back and they were again fighting in earnest. Anger filled her eyes, his was full of frustration and –

He kissed her. Somehow, in the fight, they'd gotten so close, that he was able to kiss her. This was wrong, he knew. It was temptation, all over again. But a sweet surrender, he wouldn't mind –

"_Samantha, I know you. You want what we have together. You don't care how wrong it is, it feels too right for you to resist_," he whispered as he drew away from her lips, but was still close to her, so close they could hardly count as two separate people, but a single entity.

Sam didn't know how to answer to this. Still, he went on.

"I'll make you beg for it, if you still try to resist, until you need me, and cry my name –"

The kiss that came was more passionate than gentle. Sam tried to steel herself against it and for one minute – one crazy minute – she thought she was done for. He could have his wicked way with her (which was more than likely given the circumstances) and she would actually enjoy it. But that minute passed. She tried to push him, but in the proximity of his embrace, it was impossible. She gasped, and tried to claw him at his back (there would be scratches there the next morning), but he would not relent. His kisses turned harder, rougher, a battle for dominance, and she suddenly felt dizzy, sagging against him, her knees suddenly weak. They sank to the floor, his hands still around her, and she was unconscious, as she felt a dart of pain in her neck.

When she came to, he was not around. The suitcase nearby the bed had been taken. The windows to the balcony were open, showing that must have been how he escaped. She looked out of the window, but it was too dark to see anything but the moon and the room. She felt somewhat rejected, and had a sense of failure. She realized he must have knocked her out with some tranquilizers while taken off guard.

Little did she know that he was to the side of the window. He had to make his escape. Her eyes, her whole aura radiated fury when she approached him, and he needed a way out. He had a plan, but he could not help giving her a final, impulsive kiss, and the plan changed, which resulted in a tranquilizer dart hitting her on the neck, which wouldn't last long, but long enough to make his getaway.

But the sight of her, lying lifeless on the floor, was a source of pity and desire: pity because she was intelligent and yet fell for his conniving tricks, desire, because it was her who lay on the floor. He thought about it for a wicked moment, but he decided not to take advantage of her while she was in a faint, something a gentleman would never do, although he was sure that she (along with WOOHP and those other spies) was convinced he was not, but a devil (although she seemed no longer to care that she thought that). He took pride in knowing her lips were swollen and red from his kisses. Absentmindedly, he noticed her fingers rising to touch those lips. Good. He had an effect on her. It no longer seemed that she would be his downfall – the emotion he'd drawn from her made him suspect that she already belonged to him, _body_, **heart **and _**soul**_. She drew away from the window, and he heard the sound of a door closing. She had exited the room. He sighed, as frustrated and somewhat despaired, as much as Orpheus must have been when he lost Eurydice to the underworld.

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_**Author's Note**_

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_He knows._

_So that second encounter was an anticlimax. Jeez, how many are there? (Counts number of Sam/Scam moments, but refuses to tell)._

_Read, relax, review, and you'll find out! Sorry for the late update and the short last chapter! I'll try to be more regular! And remember to review, please, and make me happy… :)_

_Lianneharmony_

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_**References**_

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_Not much reference, just pure romance, although I know some of you are wondering who are Orpheus and Eurydice._

_Orpheus was a skilled musician, and he was in love with Eurydice. Somehow, Eurydice died. Orpheus went to Hades (who ruled the Underworld, i.e. where the ancient Greeks believed the dead go to when they die) and begged for Eurydice, on one condition: he couldn't look back to see if Eurydice followed, or Eurydice would be lost to him forever. Suffice to say, he did. And she __was__ lost to him for all his life, and they only met in the underworld, after his death._

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_**Shoutouts**_

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_**Redheaded Devil**__ and __Beth__. You guys (especially __Beth__) = AWESOME! Chapter is for you guys!_


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